NOTES ON LIFE-HISTORIES, LARV^, ETC. 26i 



has the basal part the transparent appearance noticeable in that 

 species, but still it is moderately distinct, and there is a slight con- 

 striction in its upper part. [The eggs, for which I am indebted to 

 Mr. Butler, were deposited on May 23rd by a 5 captured on May 

 20th. The description was made on May 25th under a two-thirds 

 lens.] .—J. W. TuTT. 



On the hybernating larv.e of Hipparchia semele.— Ihad eight or 

 ten larvie of H. sonde last autumn. These remained small all the 

 winter, although they fed a little occasionally, and showed no ten- 

 dency to burrow, always remaining on the grass. They seemed less 

 careful to hide in daylight than the larvte of Enudia JnjperantJnts. — 

 J. J. Wolfe, Skibbereen, co. Cork. 



On the hybernating larvae of Ccenonympha pamphilus. — From 

 eggs laid last June, I had about a dozen larvas of C. pamiihilm. 

 These grew very slowly, and attempted to go through the winter in 

 the larval stage. Only two, however, managed to do so, the remaining 

 larvffi dying off. The two that survived the winter were full-fed in 

 April, when they died. — Ibid. 



Larva of Eupithecia debiliata. — About 8^ lines long, smooth, 

 and of equal thickness throughout. Colour, very dark dull greenish- 

 black. A broad black band runs down the back, bordered on each 

 side by a yellowish -white band, which is divided by a slender black 

 line. The larva rather reminds me, on a small scale, of Abraxas 

 r/rnssulanata. It feeds on the bilberry, and fastens two or three leaves 

 together, in which it hides during the day. — W. J. Kaye, F.E.S., 37, 

 Lower Hastings Street, Leicester. June 29th, 1897. 



"VARIATION. 



On the variation of Stauropus fagi, and the protective advantage 

 OF THE COLOURS ASSUMED BY THE MELANic FORM. — There are two distinct 

 forms of this insect taken in this district : — (1) The type which is 

 grey, and (2) the black form. The latter is a constantly recurring 

 aberration. I have often wondered why this black form has had no 

 varietal name given it. This matter, 1 think, deserves consideration. 

 In the beech woods, the type can be picked out ten or a dozen yards 

 away, but the inelanic forms want close searching to find. Some years 

 ago, in The Kntumolcxjlst, I suggested the probability of the melanic 

 form becoming more numerous by the process of natural selection. 

 Facts, as far as they go this year, point in this direction. Then 25 

 per cent, of those taken were dark, now the proportion has risen to 

 30 per cent. In oak woods, I take it, the grey would be the better, 

 and, perhaps, the only form protected, and the black should be 

 extremely rare or absent. Is this so ? — J. Clarke, Reading. Maii 

 Q\st, 1897. [The best and most complete notes on the variation of 

 this species, and on the special advantages oft'ered for protection to 

 the various forms by resting on different kinds of tree-trunks, are 

 those by Mr. Holland (E.M.M., xxviii., pp. 236-7) and those by Mr. 

 Bayne ( Knt. Pwc, iv., pp. 34-35). The latter summarises Mr. 

 Holland's notes, and compares the habits of the imago at Reading, 

 where it affects beech, with the habits of the insect in Epping Forest, 

 where it affects trees with pale grey trunks, and where, under some con- 



