202 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



the first season in which I have observed H. armigera caught by the 

 flowers. Noctuffi have been somewhat scarce at the flowers this 

 summer in this district. In former years I have generally obtained 

 numbers of perfect specimens of several species every morning, caught 

 iu the flowers the previous night. I find that great care is necessary 

 in cutting open the flowers to liberate the captives' antennae, in order 

 to secure good specimens. I would surmise that vast numbers of 

 insects must perish annually at these flowers in Brazil, where the 

 plant is indigenous, and where insects are perhaps more numerous 

 than in any other zoological region. — W. W. Smith; Ashburton, N.Z., 

 May 2nd, 1900. 



NoNODONTA CHAONIA. — In 1897, I picked out of the River Stour a 

 half-drowned female N. chaonia, which deposited several eggs. These 

 hatched, and I bred a long series in 1898. Some of the larvfe when 

 full-fed were put in an ordinary breeding cage, in which I last year 

 put other pup^. When looking at these on the lOtli, I found a freshly 

 emerged female chaonia, which had therefore been three years in the 

 pupal state, as I have not had any larv^ since 1897. — A. Druitt ; 

 Christchurch, May 15th, 1900. 



Erratum. — P. 157, line 4 from bottom, for "boxes" read " bones." 



CAPTURES AND FIELD REPORTS. 



LycvENa argiolus. — Whilst staying at Carmarthenshire this week I 

 observed a female of L. argiolus depositing ova on the needles or shoots of 

 the gorse or furze [XJlex eurojycBUs). I do not remember having seen this 

 recorded as one of its food-plants. — T. B. Jefferys ; Bath, June 2nd. 



Thegla w-album Larvae abundant. — Mr. P. Richards tells me that 

 he has found larvae of Thecla iv-album exceedingly common on a single wych- 

 elm between Esher and Ripley, in Surrey. All or most of those that he 

 secured have by this time pupated, and if other wych-elms are equally 

 favoured, there should be an abundance of imagines of this butterfly shortly. 

 — W. J. Lucas ; 13, Caversham Road, Kingston-on-Thames, June 14th. 



New Forest. — Three days' collecting at Easter with Mr. A. D. Wilson 

 produced fair results, considering the very cold wind. From the sallows we 

 obtained a great number of Panolis piniperda, which, with TcBniocampa 

 stabilis, were far the commonest moths. There were also a few TcBniocampa 

 miniosa, T. gothica, and Orrhodia vaccinii. During the day Amphidasys 

 prodromaria, Xylocampa lithoriza, and Tephrosia biundularia were taken 

 off trunks and fences. — H. Wells ; Hurstfield, The Avenue, Gipsy Hill, 

 Loudon, S.E., May 23rd, 1900. 



Assembling. — On the 17th inat. I took a freshly emerged Smerinthus 

 tilicB female sitting on the fence, and placed her in the assembling cage, 

 hanging it on the lower branches of a lime tree, with the following results : 

 17th, three males ; 18th, seven males ; 19th, four males ; 20th, three 

 males; 2l8t, very wet, none ; 22nd, two males; 23rd, two males. A net 

 result of twenty-one males by the agency of one female is, I think, somewhat 

 of a record even for this district, in vrhich S. tilim is fairly plentiful. A 

 striking peculiarity is also noticeable in the circumstance. We have 



