﻿SOCIKTIKS. 199 



five-eights ; altogether it is the nearest approach I have seen 

 recorded up to the present of a melanic specimen of this variable 

 species, although the Saltley district is fairly well known for pro- 

 ducing varieties. — J. H. Grant; Birmingham. 



SOCIETIES. 



The South London Entomological and Natural History 

 Society. — Jime 10th. — Mr. A. E. Gibbs, F.L.S., Vice-President, in 

 the chair. — Dr. Chapman exhibited a living specimen of Polyom- 

 matus escheri, bred from ova from Gavarnie, Pyrenees. It was of 

 the form rondoui. — Mr. Hy. J. Turner, the whole of the coloured 

 plates of the ten volumes of Herbst's ' Natursystem,' Coleoptera, 

 1783-1804, which he had bought for a few shillings from a street 

 barrow. — Mr. B. S. Williams, aberrations of Selenia hiUmaria 

 {illunaria), a very strongly marked female and a smoky male ; larvae 

 of Anticlea badiata ; and aberrations of Agrotis nigricans, a red- 

 brown form from Wicken, and a black form from St. Anne's. He 

 also reported that he had hQ\\,xd. Hylophila prasinana make a dis- 

 tinct, peculiar buzzing noise when in flight at night as it came to 

 his lantern light. — Mr. Dennis, photographs with the stereoscope of 

 Hispida atra and Formica pratensis, with sprays of laburnum and 

 spiraea. — Mr. J. P. Barrett, a living specimen of Strymon primi, 

 which had emerged on June 10th. It was considered an early date. 

 — Mr. Dunster, a series of Brenthis euyhrosyne, taken in Bucks in 

 May. — Mr. Bunnett, examples of Mygale aviculare, with photos of 

 the same. — Mr. B. Adkin, series of local forms and aberrations of 

 Buralis hetulce, and Pachygastria trifolii, and read notes on the 

 exhibit. Of the former species he showed a unique aberration with 

 an orange border to all the wings and much orange suffusion. 



June 24^/i.— Mr. B. H. Smith, B.A., E.E.S., President, in the 

 chair. — Mr. Fagg, of Lewisham, was elected a member. — Mr. 

 Edwards, for Mr. Dawson, exhibited several remarkable aberrations 

 of European butterflies, including Polyommatus icarus, with elongated 

 marginal markings on under side ; MelitcBa clictynna, with under 

 side fore wings, all markings blurred, and hind wing markings exten- 

 sively radiated, the upper side almost wholly black sufl'used ; a melanic 

 Brenthis pales, a zanthic form of Epinephele jurtina ; Polyommatus 

 hylas, with very pale marginal area on under side, and Melitcea 

 didyma, with radiated under sides. He also showed nests of the 

 humble-bee, Bombus lapidarius, with imagines from Worcestershire. 

 — Mr. West (Greenwich), the principal species of Coleoptera taken 

 by him in late May and early June in the New Forest, including 

 Leptura scutellata, Mesosa nubila, Clytus arietis, Grammoptera 

 prceitsta, Elater sanguinolentus, E. miniatus, Agrilus viriclis, Coly- 

 diiim elongatum, Aphodius niger, &c. — Messrs. B. Adkin, E. Adkin, 

 Hy. J. Turner, A. E. Gibbs, and Cowham, series and specimens of 

 Lasiocampa quercus, and Mr. B. Adkin subsequently read a paper 

 on the species. — Mr. Gibbs, a male with complete female coloration. 

 — Mr. Cowham, a female from Epsom, which was two years in pupa 



