CORtlENt NOtiSS. 221 



four miles west of Brighton), at the approaching meeting of the 

 Entomological Society of London. 



On October 27th and 28th the first part of the collection of Mr. C. 

 A. Briggs will be sold. The collection is especially rich in hermaphro- 

 dite and gynandromorphic forms of many of the Diurni - (Tjnoptcnjx 

 rliamni, Euchloe carckuiiim's, Plrheim ae;/<m, Pob/ommatiis bdlar(/iis, 

 P. icarm, P. cnn/don and Ci/cndris arf/inliis. Thbre is an unequalled 

 series of underside aberrations of the " blues," of " bleached " forms of 

 Epincphiie ianira, and unique aberrations of many other species. The 

 (Jluijiiophanm dispar will be distributed over the four days' sale. The 

 first day's sale (Oct. 27th) will comprise part of the Diurni ; on the 

 second day (Oct. 28th) the remainder of the Diurni and part of the 

 Sphingides will be sold. 



Mr. Champion (?^.M.M.) advises the use of " gum arable mixed 

 with a little loaf sugar, to give consistency, and an infinitesimal 

 quantity of carbolic acid (mixed with a small amount of spirit) " 

 instead of " gum tragacanth," for carding small Coleoptera, Hemiptera, 

 etc. He adds : "Dr. Sharp's recipe for the preparation of gum arable 

 is : ' Best gum arable, 60 parts ; loaf sugar, 80 parts ; strong spirits of 

 wine, 8 parts ; and purified carbolic acid, 2 parts. Dissolve the gum 

 and the sugar separately in as little water as possible, and then mix 

 thoroughly together. Dissolve the carbolic acid in the spirit, and 

 add it drop by drop to the larger mixture, stirring thoroughly while 

 doing so.' " 



Mr. Hamm states that Pamphila comina feels with its ovipositor 

 several blades of grass before selecting one on which to deposit an Qgg, 

 which is always laid singly, although a second may be deposited within 

 half an inch of the first. The eggs are also laid on leaves and stipules 

 of clover. 



Ac/wnnitia atr(ip<ht is recorded from Culross,N.B. (imago, Sept. 11th) ; 

 Swanage (imago, Sept. 9th) ; Fleetwood (larvae) ; Panton and Market 

 Rasen (^larvfe) ; Kingston, Oxon. (larva?) ; Lewes (larvfe) ; Little- 

 hampton (Iarv;e) ; Hay, Brecon (larvse). 



When a first-class field naturalist forms an opinion on a set of 

 facts, dift'ering from that formed by other observant naturalists from 

 the consideration of the same facts, one likes to get to the bottom of 

 the cause. This we are now able to do with regard to Mr. C. G. 

 Barrett's oft-repeated opinion that Tri'lirosia histartata (cn'pusculaiia) 

 and T. crepuscularia [hiundularia) are identical. He states [F'.M.M.) 

 emphatically that " the second brood of the brown crepuscularia 

 [ — bistortata) is obviously hiundularia.'' Arguing from such erroneous 

 premises as these, Mr. Barrett's conclusion is quite understandable. 



Some years ago, it appears, Mr. Doubleday named the aberration 

 of / '<d!/!i<mia c-alhum , with ochreous underside, ab. /; iitrli iusou i. Recently, 

 Mr. W. Harcourt Bath, evidently not an fait with previous literature, 

 re-named it ab. lutcscrns. It is, of coui'se, the ab. pallidior of old 

 Petiver and other British authors, so that both /lutc/iiiisdiii 'dxid lutcsceiis 

 are much ante-dated. 



Mr. Sidney Cooper, of Chingford, records (PJntoni.) the capture of 

 what is apparently another specimen of Catocala nupta ab. caerulescens. 

 Mr. Sabine records the capture of a gynandromorphous Chrijsophanus 

 phlocas, left wings ^ , right wings $ . The Rev. A. D. Pattison 

 records Deilephila livurnica from Lymington, whilst Mr. A. R. Upton 



