CAPTURES AND FIELD REPORTS. 203 



assembled some dozens of this species, and on no occasion has the male 

 arrived before 9 o'clock, nor have we ever been able to see one after 9.30. — 

 William A. Carter; Burr "Villas, Bexley Heath, Kent, June 6th, 1900. 



Plusia gamma abundant. — On June l'2th, just before a thutiderstorm, 

 I observed at this place a large number of P. gamma flitting about every- 

 where — hundreds of them. The previous evening I was at the same spot, 

 and did not see a single specimen. Although they are still abundant, there 

 is nothing like the same number as on the 12th. I thought the above of 

 interest, as I did not see half a dozen specimens of P. gamma here all 

 last season. — J. W. Woolhouse ; Summer Hill, Fakenham, Norfolk. 



Lyc^na argiolus. — This species has been common about the holly- 

 bushes in gardens on Blackheath during the last three weeks. — Walter 

 Dannatt; Donuington, Vanbrugh Park, Blackheath, May 28th, 1900. 



Where Tj:niocampa gracilis lays its Eggs. — During the night of 

 May 7th, whilst searching with a lamp for larvae near Chester, I found a 

 female T. gracilis laying her eggs on a dead last year's flowerhead of 

 Centaurea nigra. I see from my note-book I had a similar experience, in 

 the same lane, which is well fringed with briars, brambles, and sallows, on 

 the night of May 12th, 1899, only, in this case, the moth had chosen a dead 

 grass-head. The larvae feed on several plants —notably the trusses of un- 

 opened meadow-sweet flowers (Entom. xxxii. p. 126). The eggs of T. opima 

 1 have found on dead ragwort, thistle, and dwarf rose (Entom. xxiii. p. 307). 

 — J. Arkle ; Chester. [Ova of T. gracilis are very frequently found on 

 dead seed-heads, &c., of various low growing plants. — Ed.] 



Easter (1900) in the New Forest. — In spite of the bad weather 

 preceding the holiday, my father and I found ourselves installed in our old 

 quarters in the forest, at Bank, on April 12th. During the drive along the 

 beautiful road from Brockenhurst, it was only too plain on every hand how 

 backward is the season. The blackthorn, which a fortnight earlier last 

 year was in full flower, was now only in bud, though a few bushes came into 

 bloom during our stay. Several of the whitethorn bushes showed no green 

 at all ; many of the sallows, we were told, had only come out during the last 

 week ; a suspicion of redness gave the sole indication of the oaks beginning 

 to bud, but birch and beech looked very beautiful, the former pale yellow green 

 with catkins and young leaves, the red buds of the latter all ready to burst. 



The first night at the sallows was scarcely reassuring. It was fearfully 

 windy, and there was also a little rain. Insects refused to settle down, and 

 were very restive. There were a few each of Tcsniocampa stahilis and 

 Cerastis vaccinii, one very fine Pachnohia rubricosa, and one Eupithecia 

 abbreviata — a wretched night ! Added to our other discomforts, the 

 lantern, which had apparently not recovered from its long hybernation, 

 refused to remain alight, so we turned in early. After this the weather 

 became fairly fine as a whole, but about as adverse to collecting as it could 

 be. When the day was otherwise bright and sunny there would be a 

 terrific wind, and when there was no wind down would come the rain. At 

 night, however, wind and clouds almost invariably disappeared, and a 

 brilliant moon shone on the unfortunate collector. The total result of 

 four whole days' collecting was fourteen Xylocampa lithorhiza, one Tephrosia 

 crepuscular ia, one Pieris rapes (freshly emerged) two Vanessa polychloros, 

 which was in great numbers on the Saturday; about twenty larvae of Sesia 

 cynipi/oruiis (asili/urmis) from oak stumps, a few larvae (small) of Agroti^ 



