1373.] 275 



3rd March, 1873. — Prof. Westvvood, President, in the Chair. 



Mr. Noah Greening and Mr. Edward Charles Buxton -were elected Ordinary 

 r^Iembers. 



Mr. Howard Vaughan exhibited a box containing about 200 specimens of Japanese 

 Lepidoptera, collected by Mr. Henry Pryer near Yokohama. Several appeared to be 

 new species and some very closely resembled common British species. 



The President remarked that Mr. Higgins had shown him a specimen of a 

 Cremastochilus from Japan, which was identical with a species taken by Mr. Lord 

 on the West Coast of North America. 



Mr. F. Smith exhibited some insects bearing a striking resemblance to each 

 other, although belonging to different Orders. Thus, ^xiglossa dimidiata and 

 another Euglossa, a genus of bees, had a striking resemblance to two species of the 

 dipterous genus Asilus from South America ; also Abispa splendida, one of the 

 VespidcB, and an insect of the dipterous genus Laphria, both from New Holland ; 

 also a bee of the genus Megacliile and one of the Asilidce. With regard to the 

 last-mentioned insects, Mr. Smith noticed that the Asilus not only resembled the 

 bee in general appearance, but also was furnished on the under-side with a brush, 

 in the same manner as in MegacMle, although it was not apparent for what purpose 

 the insect required it. The President remarked that, when he was at Casa Brucciata, 

 near Ancona, he observed several insects of the genus Osmia extracting the black 

 pollen from poppies ; and on the sandy shore he noticed the same insects collecting 

 sand on their ventral brushes. He therefore concluded that the brushes were used, 

 not only for collecting pollen, but also for collecting grains of sand to carry to the 

 nests which he observed them in the act of constructing on walls. 



Mr. Champion exhibited Bagous hrevis, Schon., an insect new to the British 

 fauna, taken by Dr. Power (see p. 242 of the present Vol.) . 



Mr. Miiller directed attention to an article in the ' Potites Nouvelles,' explaining 

 a method of obtaining the silk from cocoons which had been broken through by the 

 insects, and that the silk so obtained from the damaged cocoons was equal in quality 

 to that obtained from the perfect cocoons, and did not require to be carded. 



The President remarked that the library at Oxford had lately been much in- 

 fested with Anthreni ; and he was glad to observe that there was a paper by Dr. 

 Emery, in the ' Bulletino della Societa Entomologica Italiana,' on a new method of 

 preserving collections from their ravages. 



\^th March, 1873. — Prof. Westwood, President, hi the Chau\ 



M. Ernest Olivier, of Moiihns (France), grandson of the old Froncli entomolo- 

 gist of the same name, was elected a Foreign Member. 



Prof. Westwood exhibited an exceedingly rare species of Pa ((mms, from Abys- 

 sinia. 



Mr. Smith exhibited a fiu-ther collection of Formicidce collected by Mr. Eothney, 

 chiefly in the immediate vicinity of Culcutta. The collection was in beautiful con- 

 dition, and Mr. Smith paid a high compliment to the industry and intelligence ex- 

 hibited by Mr. Eothney in his researches in this department of entomology. 

 Connected with Mr. Rothney's collection, Mr. Smith made another exhibition of 

 what were apparently three examples of the Ant Sima rufogriseum placed side by 



