January, 1881.1 ]_{J9 



NOTES OX MACRO-LEPIDOPTERA IN THE NEW FOEEST IN 1880. 

 BY W. H. B. FLETCHEB. 



HaTing stayed at Lyndhurst from the middle of April to tlie end 

 of September, with the exception of the month of June (which I spent 

 at Wicken), I venture to send a short account of my captures, from 

 which it will, I think, appear that 1880 has not been altogether a bad 

 year for collectors in " The Forest." 



Colias Edusa was very scarce, I did not see a specimen myself, 

 and heard of only a very few being seen by others. Argynnis Paphia, 

 var. Valezina, was, as usual, common. In August, 1879, I obtained a 

 batch of about sixty eggs from a worn specimen of this form, the 

 larvae hatched out in September, they did not seem to touch their food- 

 plant, but began to hibernate at once ; and Mr. George Tate tells me 

 that a few larvae obtained by him this year acted in the same way. 

 For want of care on my part, most of these little larvae died in the 

 winter ; thirteen, however, survived, and fed freely on Viola odorata, 

 V. sylvatica, and V canina, the last-named being their food-plant in 

 the New Forest, I obtained eleven pupae, and bred from them, 

 towards the end of June, 18S0, three males and three females of the 

 typical form, and five of the form Valezina. 



Cynthia cardni, abundant here, as elsewhere, in 1879, in the present 

 autumn was less common than usual, although the spring specimens 

 were plentiful. The latter, owing to the bright sunshine in April and 

 May, were a week or ten days earlier on the wing than they usually 

 are in this district. 



The larvae of Demas coryli were plentiful on all kinds of trees from 

 June to October, but absolutely swarmed in September. 



Limacodes asellus occurred sparingly in July on the wing, and a 

 few larvae were taken by Mr. Styan and myself off oak and birch in 

 September. 



Lithosia quadra was plentiful in the larva, pupa, and imago states, 

 and L. helvola was not uncommon towards the end of July. 



In the spring, JVbla cristulalis was very common on the trunks of 

 trees, and its larva was beaten freely from beeches in June and July. 



The larvae of JEllopia fasciaria were plentiful on Scotch fir in the 

 spring, as were also those of Selenia ill 'ustr aria, Eurymene dolabraria, 

 and Odontoptera bidentata, on all kinds of trees, towards the end of 

 summer, some of the varieties of the last-named larva being very 

 beautiful. 



