SCIENTIFIC NOTES. 271 



OLEOPTERA. 



The Food-plants of Apion annulipes and sundry other Beetles. 

 — In August, last year, I swept a few isolated specimens of Ajxion 

 annulipes, Wenck, off Thyme on Ditchling Beacon. Later in the year 

 one or two more were brushed from herbage in the field adjoining the 

 garden. In the latter locality there was apparently no Thyme. In the 

 immediate district of the Beacon there is no Orif/anion vulgare, but it 

 may be found in profusion a mile or two off at Pyecombe. Knowing 

 this to be the plant which A. annulipes has of late years been found on, 

 I gave up many hours to working it most thoroughly. No Apion, 

 however, rewarded my efforts, but I discovered Lonf/itarsus pulex, 

 Schrank, a typical thyme species very much at home on the Marjoram 

 as was Chrysoniela polita, L. 



This August on again sweeping stray A. annulipes in our garden 

 field, I made a determined effort to localize it to some particular plant. 

 Having given careful attention to various Labiatae, I ultimately found 

 that the Apion was attached to Prunella vuljaris. By carefully 

 tapping the plants over paper a nice series of males and females was 

 taken. That this very rare weevil should have as one of its food 

 plants such a prolific and wide- spread meadow- weed as Jhunella is 

 particularly interesting. 



In early September, by beating the capitula of Centaurea nigra, I 

 found both Apion onopordi, Kirby, and Orchestes pratensis, Germ., not 

 uncommonly. These seem notes of confirmatory importance, particu- 

 larly the latter. Orchestes salicis, L., was seen on the Dwarf Sallow, 

 Salix repens, at Tilgate Forest in late September, Longitarsus atricillus, 

 L., in great abundance, and L. ochroleucus, Marsh, rarely, were swept 

 from a field of Sainfoin, Unobrychis sativa. In reference to the last 

 species, Mr. J. R. le B. Tomlin's note in the November number of the 

 Ent. Mo. Mag., was of much interest to me. On September 19th I 

 swept this Halticiid in small numbers from Senecio vulgaris near 

 Brighton. — Hereward C. Dollman (F.E.S.), Hove House, Newton 

 Grove, Bedford Park, W. 



SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS. 



Notes on Luperina nickerlii var. gueneei. — The female of this 

 species lays its eggs in small patches on the Sea Hard Grass, Lepturus 

 incurvatus. The young larvse emerge in about twenty days, and are 

 then of a dark flesh colour with large black heads. They bore a hole 

 in the stem, but wander a little before doing so, and therefore do not 

 all get into the same stem. They stay in the stems until about February, 

 when they have grown too large. A sort of loose cocoon is then 

 formed on the roots, and within its shelter the young larvn3 eat away, 

 go a little farther and do the same, until they are full fed, when they 

 make a long flimsy cocoon of silk and sand grains, often over two 

 inches in length. The cocoon is always mixed up with grass, probably 

 for strength. As the larvre grow larger they become lighter in colour, 

 but keeping quite a flesh colour until near the time for pupation, 

 when they go yellowish to dirty white, with sometimes a tinge of 

 green. No doubt the early season of this year has made the larvae 



