266 THE entomologist's record. 



larvae had left the potato patch and clmibed over a low wall and 

 pupated in a tuft of coarse grass in the next garden, but the majority 

 were found when lifting the crop. It would be of interest to know 

 the life-history of these two Sphingids, especially whether the females 

 which migrate from the Continent in the spring — having been found 

 at sea — only are fertile, and not the autumn brood. No doubt a !^in(/le 

 female produced all the larv;e and pupas found in this village alluded 

 to, an area of less than 1,000 acres. — W. H. Tuck, M.A., Tostock 

 House, Bury St. Edmunds. Oct., 1897. 



Breeding Acherontia atropos. — I had a specimen of Acherontia 

 afriijios emerge on July 20th, 1897, from a pupa which had been kept, 

 without a cocoon, in dry moss under a bell glass in an earthen pan, 

 standing in another pan with water in it. The moth squeaked 

 vigorously. Nine or ten A. atrojio.s larvje, which pupated successfully 

 in earth in separate Hower-pots, which were sunk in the ground out- 

 of-doors, all died, though not taken out of their cocoons till after 

 death. — F. Norgate, 98, Queen's Road, Bury St, Edmunds. 



Pupation of Cossus ligniperda in the ground. — A friend, living 

 in the New Forest, sends me the following interesting account, dated 

 1st July : — " I came across a ' Goat moth ' the other day on my lawn, 

 evidently newly emerged. About six inches oft' was the upper half of 

 the freshly-vacated chrysalis standing perpendicularly. We pulled it 

 out of the hole it was in. and, looking down, could see something at 

 the bottom of the hole. On removing the turf, we found the cocoon 

 lying in a horizontal position, and close to it a small piece of chrysalis." 

 Is the fact of (/. Ivjnipcnla pupating under ground known to 

 naturalists ? I have never heard of it myself, and always understood 

 that the rotten wood in trees was the usual site, the larva^ using up 

 the decayed wood to form the cocoon. This incident would account 

 for the full-fed larvae being occasionally seen wandering in the open. 

 — C. Bingham Newland, Killetra, Mallow. September 8th, 1897. 

 [Vide, Tutt, British Moths, p. 339.— Ed.] 



Result of spring collecting and observations in go, Cork. — 

 The species taken at sugar during June, in this district, were as 

 follows: — Gonophora dcrasa, Thj/atira batis, Pharetra nunicis, Lexuania 

 coiiniia, A.njlia imtris, Xiilojiliasia litho.ri/lea, X pohjodon, X. subliistris, 

 Mduhstra pcrsicariae, M. stn'iplis, Grammesia trilinea, Caradrina cuhi- 

 nihiris, Pi'ridroma sujf'usa, A;/rotis corticea, Tn/phaena orhona, T. 

 pnniKba, Nnctrm plecta, N. c-nufnun, N. trianiiulum, N. brunnea, 

 PhlotiiipJiora iiieticulosa, Aplecta herhida, Hadena tdcracea, H. pisi, H. 

 thalassina. — Ibid. 



Macroglossa bombyliformis in CO. Cork. — On May the 12th, I 

 noted M. homhiilifaiinis on low marshy ground, in which field scabious 

 was plentiful, and also Pcdindaris si/lratira, at the flowers of which 

 M. biiiiibi/liforinis was busily engaged, poising over them for a moment 

 to extract the honey, and then flying away to another patch, but con- 

 stantly returning. I could not observe more than one insect at a time, 

 so that possibly it was always the same. These visitations occurred 

 between 3 and 4 p.m., during the time the sun was out. When 

 overcast, M. bombi/liformis was conspicuous by its absence. — Ibid. 



Plusia moneta near Rochester. — I have pleasure in recording the 

 capture of a specimen of this rave species here, at light, on June 27th 

 last. Phixio iota and P.pidchrina are both also moderately abundant. 

 — (Miss) Clara E, Pye, Knight's Place, Rochester. September, 1897. 



