REVIEW. 95 



then read a paper detailing his results in breeding Aplecta nebulosa 

 and its varieties ; he showed the different families obtained as the 

 progeny of selected parents, and suggested how the black forms of 

 the moth might arise in nature. He also stated that the percentage 

 of black forms bred from wild larvte obtained from a certain selected 

 area had sensibly diminished in the last four years, while, so far as 

 known, there was no increase in any other part of Delamere Forest. 

 Observations extending over the last fifteen years were embodied in 

 the paper. — Exhibitions: Mr. Leonard West had a collection of larval 

 cases of the caddis fly, very curious forms of these little-known 

 larval habitations being represented. 



Fehruary llth, 1919.— The President, Mr. Eichard Wilding, in 

 the Chair.— Mr. H. M. Hallett, F.E.S., read a paper entitled "Way- 

 side Hymenoptera." The paper described one of the author's 

 favourite banks in Glamorgan, where, in a short length of some thirty 

 yards he had taken upwards of 150 species of Hymenoptera. 

 The rarer species and their habits 'were noticed in some detail; the 

 whole formed a most interesting account of the intensive study of 

 the fauna of a limited area. — Dr. John Cotton followed with a short 

 paper, illustrated by a series of lantern-slides, on the nest-building of 

 Odynerus ; the growth of the nest from the first cell to the completion 

 of the full series and of the embryo from the ovum to the nymph 

 were shown. Slides representing the imago at work, the larvae with 

 w^hich the cells w^ere stored by the parent wasp as food for its young, 

 instances of parasitism, ecc, combined to make a highly instructive 

 address. — Exhibits were as follows, viz. : Mr. Leonard West, a water- 

 colour drawing showing the life-histories of various Trichoptera. — Mr. 

 W. A. Tyerman, Eugenia erosaria and Agriojns avrilina from Eastham. 

 — Mr. F. N. Pierce, Cidaria minna from Japan and Assam with 

 C. otregiata for comparison. — Mr. W. Mansbridge showed a small 

 selection of aberrations of Feronea cristana recently received from 

 Mr. W. G. Sheldon. — Wm. Mansbridge, Hon. Sec. 



EEVIEW. 



Observations relatives d la Biologie de Lycmna alcon. Lejndoptero- 



logie Comparee, vol. xvi, Octobre, 1918. Imprimerie Oberthiir, 



Rennes. 



When the posthumous volume of Tutt's ' British Butterflies' (iv) 



appeared in 1914 we were still in doubt as to the final larval and 



pupal stages of Lyccena arion. That ambiguity has been cleared up 



by the indefatigable perseverance of Mr. Frohawk, Capt. Bagwell- 



Purefoy, and Dr. Chapman. We knew arion as a true myrme- 



cophilous species, and that it passes its winter life in the ants' nest. 



In the extract from ' Lepidopterologie Comparee,' vol. xvi, now before 



us, much of the mystery attending the life-history of the closely allied 



Lyccena alcon in unveiled. To Dr. T. A. Chapm'an, following up the 



clues provided by M. Oberthur, and Mr. H. Powell of Hy^res, we 



