186 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Life-histortf of Pterophoriis plagiodactylus. — The larva 

 feeds on Scabiosa columbaria in April and May, eating 

 down into the heart of the plant before its flowering-stem is 

 thrown up, and thus utterly destroying it : it is of a light 

 green colour, hairy, and gradually attenuated from the head 

 to the anal extremity : the pupa is slender, with green wing- 

 cases and a pinkish body ; it is suspended by the tail, either 

 from its food-plant or from any blade of grass or other object 

 it may find in the neighbourhood ; in this state it remains 

 about fifteen days, when the perfect insect appears. Head 

 and face fuscous ; fore wings irrorated with dark scales on the 

 anterior portion ; inner margin ochreous, irrorated ; a small 

 dark spot on the third part of the wing ; then a large wedge- 

 shaped one at the head of the cleft, and a dark streak in the 

 first lobe, the first cleft edged with a whitish streak ; under 

 wings, together with their cilia, brownish ; thorax dark ; first 

 segment of abdomen triangular, ochreous, edged with white ; 

 upper surface of the legs dark, spurs and feet light. I am 

 not aware that this insect or its larva have ever been pre- 

 viously described : the specimens from which the above de- 

 scriptions were made were found in the larva state at Llan- 

 ferris, when 1 was there in April last, in company with Mr. 

 Greening : the bred specimens were of average darkness, but 

 bred specimens vary much in colour. The plant destroyed 

 by this insect grows on ground where only sheep and goals 

 can travel on the ledges of the rocks, and were it not kept in 

 check by the larvae would soon cover the ground with a plant 

 1 have never seen eaten by any animal. — C. S. Gregson. 



Enlomological Notes and Captures. 



Note on Pterophorns Lienigianiis. — The larva of this 

 species is still unknown to me, but the leaves of Artemisia 

 vulgaris (raugwort), which it has eaten, have been most 

 kindly forwarded to me by Mr. Harding, of Deal, to whom 

 alone, 1 believe, is its life-history known : in the most liberal 

 spirit Mr. Harding has promised to supply me next year 

 with eggs and larvae, that I may describe them for the in- 

 formation of all. The antennae of the perfect insect are rather 

 short and slender; the head and thorax light ashy gray ; the 



