TRIFfD.E, 163 



insect was lost sight of, until in September 1859, a specimen 

 was captured by the late Mr. F. Bond in the Isle of WiiJ^ht, 

 and introduced into the British list as a new species under 

 the name of cxtranca, Gn, Another was captured at Lewes, 

 Sussex, about the same time. The next record that I find is 

 of one at Neath, South Wales, in 1869, followed by one in 

 1874, at Lyndhurst, Hants. In 1878, one was secured at 

 Leiston, Suffolk, by the Hon. Mrs. Carpenter ; one at Walmer, 

 Kent, by Professor K, Meldola ; and one at Torquay, Devon, 

 by Mr. A. H. Jones. Mr. E. R. Bankes obtained a specimen 

 about the same time in the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset ; and 

 others were found in Cornwall and the Scilly Isles. In 189G 

 one was secured in the New Forest, Hants. Probably other 

 stray specimens have occurred, but these are all the records 

 that I can find in England and Wales. In Ireland the Hon. 

 B. E. Dillon states that he took a specimen at sugar, at 

 Clonbrock in the County Gal way, in July 1891, and its 

 identity is confirmed by Mr. Kane, who also records the 

 capture of another specimen upon the coast near Cork, in 

 September 1896. 



It seems not improbable that all these were migrants 

 from North America, since the species is not, I think, known 

 to occur upon the continent of Europe. It has been found 

 rarely at Madeira and the Azores ; but its home is apparently 

 North America, where it abounds through Canada and the 

 United States to the east side of the Rocky Mountains, in 

 the District of Columbia, Venezuela, Chili, La Plata and 

 elsewhere in Brazil ; also extending to Hawaii, New Zealand, 

 Australia, Java, India, China, and Japan ; and being in most 

 of these regions very common. 



In its headquarters in North America it is occasionally an 

 object of the keenest anxiety and dread from the ravages of 

 its larvae upon wild and cultivated grasses and cereals. 

 Under the name of the "Army Worm" it has for many 

 years engaged the attention of agriculturists, and has been 

 the theme of numerous papers by State Entomologists and 



