NOTES ON LTFE-HTSTORIES, LARVAE, ETC. 61 



were laid Hept. 4th, 1896 ; those sent by Mr. Clarke were laid during 

 the first week of October, 1896] .—J. W. Tutt. 



^^ARI ATION. 



Pale grey aberrations of Boarjiia abietaria. — I bred a peculiar 

 pale grey specimen of B. abietaria last year, from a larva obtained in 

 the New Forest. — J. C. Moberly, M.A., F.E.S., Rockstone Place, 

 Southampton. 



Variation of Oporabia filigrajimaria. — I have bred about a dozen 

 and a half imagines of (K Jili'/raiiniuiria, from ova sent me from 

 Bolton, by Mr. Allen. They hatched about the middle of February, 

 fed readily on whitethorn, and began to go down about the middle of 

 April. On August 26th the first emerged, and they continued to do so 

 at intervals until the middle of October. All of them have a slight 

 purplish tinge ; but as regards size and markings, they range from 

 large and pale (some large and ample winged, as (K dlliitata), with the 

 markings hardly more than indicated, to males with dark, clear trans- 

 verse stripes. I confess 1 hardly know what ( K autuiiinaria is, but a 

 close study of the different books at hand suggests to me that some of 

 the larger specimens of these I have bred might very easily be classi- 

 fied as 0. autuiiinaria, if the imago form is all that is to guide one. I 

 found that the larvae would eat sallow and birch, as well as whitethorn, 

 which again makes me suspicious as to O. autuiiinaria being a separate 

 species, as very little appears to be known about its larva, beyond that 

 it is said to feed on birch. — .J. C. Moberly, M.A., F.E.S., South- 

 ampton. Fi'bruarii, 1897. 



X^OTES ON COLLECTING, Etc. 



Abraxas grossulariata in the winter. — -I have recently bred a 

 specimen of A. iiroasulariata from one of a few full-fed larv;e that I 

 picked up in the garden quite late in the autumn, so late that some of 

 the larvie died because there were no more leaves to be found on the 

 currant bushes. I still have a few pupae which are apparently alive. 

 Only a day or two ago I noticed one had somewhat changed colour, 

 and I expected to see the moth emerge, but instead of that I found a 

 dipterous pupa at the bottom of the box, the larva of the Dipteron 

 having eaten its way through the pupa case of the A. (/rossulariata. 

 If the parasite emerges it will find itself a somewhat out-of-date 

 individual. -A. W. Mera. Fehruanj, 1897. 



Autumnal emergences of Acherontia atropos. — I bred a fine 

 imago of A. atrupus towards the end of October last, from a pupa sent 

 to me by Mr. J. Anderson, of Chichester. — J. C. Moberly, M.A., 

 F.E.S., Southampton. 



I bred six fine Aclterontia atropos during November last. As soon 

 as the nights got cold I began to lose the puptp, although the imagines 

 were almost matured and ready for emergence. The pupte appeared 

 to get numbed and feeble. I then put them in a fairly uniform 

 temperature of 80'^ F., and they here succeeded in emerging again.— 

 E. A. Bowles, M.A., F.E.S. , Myddelton Hall, Waltham Cross. 



Abundance of Lithocolletis larv^ in the autumn of 1896. — 

 The mines of various species of Lithocolletis were rather more abundant 



