20 



[June, 



frangula is the favourite food, I can, from my own experience, corroborate Mr. 

 Stainton's note, that E. catharticus is sometimes chosen. It is worth our while to 

 contrast the life of G. rhamni, ten months in the perfect state, with that of Polyom- 

 matus Alsus, ten months in the state of larva. 



Colias Edusa. — The fact of this insect being double brooded is proved conclu- 

 sively, and the account of the larva is very complete.* 



C. Hyale. — An interesting history until the period of hibernation, but in- 

 complete. 



Of Aporia cratagi there is no account, but the figures only ; Pieris brassicee, 

 rapa, and napi are supplemented in a most interesting manner by Mr. Hellins. I 

 can add mignonette as a favourite food of P. rapcB, also Alliaria afficinaUs and 

 Cardamine pratensis to the food plants of Pieris napi. The history of Pieris 

 Daplidice is very full and most interesting, and the deduction (from the larvae dying 

 of cold as early as the 28th of September) " that Daplidice is quite unsuited to our 

 climate, and is an insect belonging to a warmer country," is probably quite correct. f 



Anthocharis cardamines is only described by Mr. Hellins in the last moult. 

 My first acquaintance with this larva was at Lewisham, when it was pointed out to 

 me by Mr. Stainton on the flower stems of horse-radish in his garden. Many of 

 the CrucifercB are mentioned as its food-plants {Sinapis arvensis, Turritis glabra, 

 and others) ; I should have been inclined to look on Cardamine pratensis as its 

 favourite, but though this is in the list, Mr. Ilarwood looks on S. arvensis as first. 



The description of Leucophasia sinapis is brief, but very good, that of the strange 

 pupa excellent ; I have watched the female depositing eggs upon Lotus cornicnlatus. 



The larva? of the various Satyi-ida are so retired in their habits, and hide so 

 deftly amongst the grass to which they for the most part much assimilate in colour, 

 that they are not often met with, except by those who specially search for them ; 

 the life-history of most, when supplemented by Mr. Hellins' notes, is highly in- 

 teresting, Erebia Casxiope {Epiphron) being the only one left quite incomplete, the 

 larvee of this insect dying during hibernation, and therefore before attaining the full 

 growth. 



With regard to Lasiommata Egeria and Megcera, one of my puzzles, is yet left 

 undetermined. By the dates of Mr. Hellins, L. Egeria is found in Devon in April 

 and May. I My dates are April 9th, 1843, Teignmouth, common; April 12th, 

 Lympstone ; again in June and July ; and finally my latest date is September 25th, 

 1865, Teignmouth : in September, 1873, it is noted as common at Heidelberg. Are 

 the April and June broods the same flight, or do the April insects pass the winter in 

 the pupa state ? I can fully confirm the fact that the eggs of the autumn brood 



* The idea of the older entomologists was that the female lived through the winter and de- 

 posited her eggs in the spring. The dates here given militate against this — eggs laid by a female 

 October 10th (Mr. Barrett, Pembroke), and June 12th (Rev. E. T. Daubeny, Bedhampton). I 

 have my.self seen a female depo.siting eggs late in October at Lympstone, Devon, and another on 

 June 27th in the Khone Valley. In Ijoth cases the eggs were laid on leaves of clover. 



t Mr. Barrett gave the same reason for the larvpe of Deiopeia pv.lehella not arriving at per- 

 fection ; the coldness of our autumn months preventing the larvse from feeding uji f\illy is very 

 likely a powerful factor in preventing these insects from gaining a more permanent footing in our 

 island. 



t My old theory of these broods was that the larva; from the April or May butterflies pro- 

 duced the autumn brood of August and September ; that the eggs from these came to larvse 

 which fed throvigh the winter and came to perfection in June, and that larva; fi-om these com- 

 pleted the cycle and appeared in April and May, passing the winter as pupa;. This is disproved 

 by Mr. Hellins' careful notes ; but I imagine that in mild winters larva; may feed instead of 

 hibernating, and pupate early, or in some exceptional cases, change late in the autumn. 



