THE ENTOMOLOGIST S RECOED. 



"Larva," "Pupa," "Enemies," and "Habits," following in a mild 

 way our own method of describing a life-history, at any rate, allows 

 one easily to trace the lacunae, which are so easily hidden when a very 

 imperfect life-history is made continuous. Indeed, it is not until a 

 life-history is dissected in this Avay, that one recognises how much 

 ignorance remains unsuspected in a life-history written as a piece of 

 continuous composition. 



Dr. Manon writes, as if it were a phenomenon just discovered, a short 

 paper, that finds place in the Bull. Soc. Ent. de la France, pp. 32-3, on 

 the occurrence of composite cocoons in Boinhijx mori. This particular 

 peculiarity is of course well-known, and has been fully discussed in 

 the Natural Histori/ of Britii^h Ijcpidoptera, vol. ii., pp. 443, 511-12, 

 540, 560, and vol. iii., pp. 27, 328-9, where a large number of examples 

 relating to the composite cocoons of Laclmeis lanestru, Malacosoma 

 7ietistria, iV. castremis, FUicJiyt/aatria trifolii, Saturnia ])arovia, etc., are 

 dealt with. 



Le Cerf publishes {Bull. Soc. Ent. Erance, p. 21) the description 

 of a new variety of Thais cerisi/i, from the Mountains of Louristan, 

 Persia, near var, cretica, with wider, and more rounded, hindwings 

 than any other form of the species, these wings being absolutely entire, 

 and without any trace of the characteristic crenulations of Thais, etc. 

 He names it var. louristana, and bases the description on 2(7s. 

 Oberthiir describes a new $ form of A(jriatles bellarf/iis under the 

 name of coelestis, from Vendee, etc. {op. cit., p. 25), and a new form of 

 Dryas papJiia var. dives from Algeria. 



At the meeting of the Entomological Society of London held on 

 March 4th, the question of raising the life membership fee from 15 

 guineas to 20 guineas was discussed. As a matter of actuarial business, 

 based on the length of life of "Life Members" since 1840, it was 

 clearly shown that the present " compounding " subscription was too 

 low. On the other hand, certain important speculative items 

 entered into the problem. In the final voting the present life sub- 

 scription of 15 guineas was maintained, the voting being 27 in favour 

 of 15 guineas as against 25 in favour of 20 guineas. Almost 20 Fellows 

 present refrained from voting. A hint by one Fellow of a variable life- 

 subscription based on age was not followed up. * 



The Rev. G. Wheeler, exhibited at the same meeting, some puzzling 

 Melitaeas taken at Eeazzino, between Locarno and Bellinzona, which 

 he was inclined to refer to Melitaea britomartis. Apart from the point 

 as to whether they were referable to britomartis, Mr. Tutt suspected 

 that they were a southern form of Melitaea dictynna with very open 

 markings on the upperside ; some examples not very unlike them 

 having been taken by himself and Dr. Chapman in the Tyrol. 



It is with the greatest regret that we record the death of Mr. 

 Herbert Goss, which took place on February 9th. The deceased 

 gentleman served for many years as secretary of the Entomological 

 Society of London, having joined the Society in 1874. His actual 

 knowledge of practical entomology was of the slenderest. A summary 

 of already published details on fossil insects from his pen appeared in 

 the Ent. Mo. May. many years ago ; his other published notes referring 

 merely to the capture, etc., of the rarer British butterflies, which he 

 hunted with remarkable assiduity. A few day-flying moths also 

 interested him, but this was practically all. Yet the work that he did 



