THE SEASON OF 1897- 57 



up as I have never before seen equalled, excepting perhaps in the 

 autumns of 1892 and 1893. 



I had no opportunity of working the sallows this year, but 

 my cousin, Mr. W. J. Ogden, who was at Bournemouth at the 

 end of March, met with little success. In an afternoon's trip 

 from there to Brockenhurst he obtained larvae of Thera variata, 

 T.firmata, and Ellopia fasciaria, and an odd imago of Xylocampa 

 lithorhiza from the pines, but neither Trachea piniperda nor 

 larvae of Boarmia abietaria. A number of Xanthia larvae from a 

 large sallow all proved to be silago, while from the same bush in 

 1896 all the Xantkias taken were cerago. These latter had turned 

 out a very nice lot, including both var. flavescens and some fine 

 orange forms. Therefore, anticipating another variable series 

 from the 1897 larvae, I was disappointed at their all producing a 

 strictly typical lot of silago. Both years a few X. ferruginea were 

 mixed with the others. 



At Waldringneld, in Suffolk (April 16th-26th), the same pine- 

 feeding larvse were again beaten, but far more backward than 

 those from the New Forest; and from, ash a fine lot of 

 Cirrhoedia xerampelina were obtained, some forty odd of various 

 sizes. These were beaten after dark from the apparently bare 

 twigs both of full-grown trees and hedgerow saplings, and fed up 

 fairly well on the large buds until the latter broke into leaf; 

 some died, but enough were left for a good series in September. 

 Little else was taken here but a few Lycana argiolus, and one 

 Trockilium apiformis larva which was killed in getting out. 



During May I did no collecting whatever, and very few things 

 came to light around home. 



I first tried treacling on June 4th at Chingford, and the result 

 was only one single moth, but that a very fine Cymatophora 

 ocularis, evidently just out, with the rose-blush fresh on the 

 wings ; a very few Cidaria russata and Acidalia remutata at 

 dusk were all I saw besides, and things seemed very backward 

 altogether. Two days later eleven Xylophasia scolopacina larvae 

 were found by searching the grass with a lantern at Highgate, 

 where the species still lingers in the old Church Bottom Woods, 

 although very locally even in that limited area. An odd speci- 

 men also of the moth turned up there at treacle in July. 



Late in the afternoon of June 14th I ran down to Darenth, 

 returning home by the 9.25 train from Greenhithe. Everything 

 was still behindhand, and beating was most disappointing. I 

 thrashed along all the hedges from Dartford to the wood, and 

 hardly a moth of any sort did I disturb, the only one worth 

 taking being a fresh Phibalapteryx vitalbata. In the wood itself 

 things were almost as bad, and after two hours' hard work I had 

 only boxed odd specimens of Epkyra porata, Tephrosia extersaria, 

 T. punctulata, Platypteryx falcula, Bapta temerata, and Lomaspilis 

 marginata. However, after dark lots of moths were flying along 



