NOTES, CAPTURES, ETC. Lee 
of acres, and most of them in one particular portion of ground, a 
few yards in extent. Both sexes are distinguishable at a glance 
on the wing, being totally different in colour to bellargus, or any 
other blue in appearance when flying. The spring brood was 
quite as numerous as corydon later on; and I hope to visit the 
spot again in the autumn to see if there is a later brood of 
Cellargus, and if the same pale form is to be met with. I would 
only add that I was as much surprised as pleased to meet with 
these varieties, especially with such a number of them, both 
sexes having occurred. I should fancy they are worthy a name. 
—E. SaBInE; 22, The Villas, Erith. 
MELIT#A ATHALIA AND NEMEOBIUS LucINnA, Locauity.— 
Perhaps some of the contributors to the Entomologist would 
kindly afford any information they may possess accounting for 
the noted peculiarity of this butterfly to localise itself in a few 
favoured woods in the South of England, though its undoubted 
food-plant, discovered by Mr. Harwood of Colchester (Melam- 
pyrum pratense, is generally distributed in this country. I may 
here mention that an attempt was made by Mr. Harwood to 
establish a colony of M. athalia in a wood about fifteen miles 
from one of its haunts in Kssex, where its food-plant abounded ; 
but though the insect fairly established itself for a few seasons, 
from some cause or other, after changing its habitat from one 
clearing to another in the wood, it disappeared, and has not 
since been seen in that locality so far as I am aware. The 
cause of its disappearance may have been due to crowding out 
by the rapid growth of the underwood. My experience of M. 
athalia, and doubtless that of others, is that it thrives best in 
those open spaces in woods where the young birches are few and 
far between, and where the flora which usually springs up after a 
clearance is luxuriant. It is useless to search the denser portions 
of the wood, even though adjoining the metropolis. Stragglers, 
however, may be taken in the ridings of the wood. Indeed I 
heard of an extreme instance in which a few stragglers were 
taken in a field at least five miles from their head-quarters. 
Nemeobius lucina is another butterfly with a similar tendency to 
localize itself, though its food-plant (Primula vulgaris) is common 
in most woods. I see it recorded in several works that N. lucina 
is double-brooded, but I have never known or taken specimens of 
ENTOM.— JULY, 1886. 2A 
