238 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Following up my success I bred this year, from galls from 

 the same locality, seventeen or eighteen specimens, varying 

 greatly in size, intensity of colouring, and in the shape and 

 size of the costal blotch. Of these the largest was close on 

 nine lines across, and the smallest under six lines. In some 

 the costal blotch was clear and white, in others it was 

 traversed by two distinct brownish lines, darkest on the costa 

 and sloping towards the apex of the fore wings, and in the 

 remaining examples the blotch was more or less suffused 

 with a brownish tinge. 



I was only able to capture two examples this year, but 

 my friend Mr. Howard Vaughan, who was more fortunate, 

 kindly lent me his series for comparison. Nearly all the 

 captured specimens are considerably lighter than the bred 

 ones, and the costal blotch, instead of being white, is 

 of a light brownish grey tinge, in which the darker 

 traversing lines mentioned by Wilkinson are very dis- 

 tinct. Noticing that the more worn a specimen was, the 

 darker the costal blotch became, and the nearer it assimi- 

 lated to the ground colour of the fore wings, and thinking 

 the white blotch might be formed by an outer layer of scales 

 which would soon wear off with the flight of the insect, I 

 allowed a bred specimen, with a very distinct white blotch, 

 to remain in the breeding cage. It fully answered my 

 expectations, on the second day of its existence the blotch 

 being of alight brown colour, and the velvety appearance of 

 the fore wings having entirely disappeared. Altogether it 

 presented a most distinct appearance, so far as colour was 

 concerned, from its bred companions. In none of my speci- 

 mens have I been able to find the " lustrous blue markings 

 towards the apex of the front wings," as mentioned by 

 Wilkinson. According to the custom of priority of nomen- 

 clature. Professor Zeller's name, E. gallicolana, should be 

 adopted for this species. 



Ephippiphora gallicolana must be considered as a local 

 rather than a rare insect. It is to be found at Tilgate Forest, 

 and, nearer London, at Epping and Darenth Wood. I have also 

 taken it at West Wickham and Highgate Woods ; but my first 

 specimens came from a small oak copse close to the Alex- 

 andra Palace, and I am sorry to say since destroyed. It 

 flies at dusk round the boughs of the oaks, and always high; 

 its flight is slow and steady, which enables it to be at once 

 distinguished from Phoxopleryx Mitterbacheriana, which 

 is usually out in abundance at the sauie time. The time of 



