t8 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



on which ihey grew ; and I imagine ihe explanation of the 

 apparent scarcity of the females to be that the majority of 

 them remain where they emerge, amongst the leaves and rub- 

 bish on the ground : the females which I did see were found 

 towards evening, on the trunks of the trees, often running 

 rapidly over the bark, apparently in search of their sleepy 

 partners ; indeed, in this species the usual order of Nature 

 seemed to be reversed, the male sitting still, waiting for the 

 female to find him and arouse him to a sense of his duty. 

 There was something almost ludicrous in this aspect of 

 affairs, — a dozen elegant gentlemen asleep on a tree, and a 

 stout lady bustling up the stem in search of a husband. One 

 might almost fancy that previously to going into pupa they 

 had agreed to meet again on the tree-trunk, but that owing 

 to the unfortunate non-development of their wings very few 

 of the ladies had been able to keep the assignation. Be that 

 as it may, the males sat on unmoved, until, leiupus Edax 

 rerum, very often in the shape of a tom-tit, released them 

 from their engagements. Both sexes vary much in colour ; 

 some are almost white, others perfectly black ; an interme- 

 diate shade, closely assimilating to the colour of oak-bark, 

 was much more abundant than either of the extreme varieties. 

 I shall be glad to send a series of the insect to any one who 

 wishes for them. — Edwin Birchall ; Airedale Cliff, Leeds, 

 April 9, 1868. 



Amphydasis prodromaria. — Is it usual for " cripples " to 

 pair ? I had a female A, prodromaria emerge last week, and 

 kept it a few days. Its wings were crippled, and very little 

 larger than when it first emerged from the chrysalis. It was 

 placed in a roomy box, and readily paired with a male which 

 emerged a few days afterwards, and has deposited eggs. — 

 H. McDoivall ; Kettering, March 16, 1868. 



Xylomiges conspicillaris near Gloucester. — I have to 

 record the capture of the rare X. conspicillaris, which ap- 

 peared in one of my breeding-cages on the 1st inst. It was 

 dug with other pupae, but was unrecognized among about 

 600 commoner species until it appeared in propria persona. 

 This is the second specimen I have taken in this neighbour- 

 hood ; the previous one several years since, when a friend 

 from Yorkshire succeeded in obtaining two specimens. — 

 J. Merrin ; Gloucester, April 21, 1868. 



