10 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



REMARKS UPON THE 'ENTOMOLOGIST' SYNONYMIC 

 LIST OF BRITISH LEPIDOPTERA. 



In Mr. Dunning's review in the 'Entomologist' (vol. xvii. p. 

 213) of this list, and his enumeration of the species mentioned in 

 it, there is a clerical error which requires correction. Mr. Dun- 

 ning states the number of Tortrices recorded in it to be 245, 

 whereas the number really is 343, and this correction will 

 bring up the total number of species in the list to 2080 

 instead of 1982, the whole number mentioned according to 

 Mr. Dunning. 



In any new edition of the list Mr. South will doubtless pay 

 attention to the valuable suggestions contained in Mr. Dunning's 

 critical review of it, but I would add for Mr. South's considera- 

 tion one or two further remarks on the contents of his list. The 

 genus Aporophyla of Guenee appears in two places, first among 

 the Apameida (p. 6), and again smong the Hadenida (p. 9). The 

 genus Calamia, too, of Hiibner, appears on page 5, and again on 

 page 6. 



In compiling his list in conformity with the law of priority, 

 Mr. South appears to have overlooked the desirability of avoid- 

 ing the same name for different insects. In Doubleday's list 

 the same specific name was occasionally used to denote more 

 than one insect, but these instances are few in number, viz., 

 comma, cratcegi, ligustri, 2)opuU, quercus, ruhi, urticcB, and the 

 insects denoted in Doubleday's list by the same specific name 

 belong to different groups. Mr. South, however, appears to have 

 considerably increased the inconvenience thus occasioned, for in 

 over 70 cases the same specific name is applied in his list to 

 different insects — often, moreover, to different insects in the 

 same group, and in many instances with the same author's name 

 following. The confusion that must necessarily ensue in the 

 minds of young and indeed old entomologists, will be gathered 

 from the following instances which are taken from the list, 

 especially when it is borne in mind that entomologists are 

 careless as to postfixing the name of the author to the specific 

 name. For facility of reference I have numbered consecutively 

 the species enumerated in Mr. South's list and indicate them 

 accordingly : — 



