104 



THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



the end of July in 1903, but I took the species perfectly fresh at 

 Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, on September 3rd. I also captured 

 nine males flying over a pond in a brickfield at Brockenhurst on 

 September 26fch ; three of these were splendid brown forms (no 

 doubt due to age). All were taken between half-past four and 

 five o'clock, when the lengthening shadows from the trees had 

 almost covered the water ; still there was one corner where the 

 sun could be seen, and here I had no trouble in securing ci/aiiea. 

 Although .iJ. graiidis flies late in the day, and is often very busy 

 during a shower, yet I have never found it fall so easy a victim 

 to the net as cyanea. I first saw grandis last year at Esher on 

 July 21st ; later on I took several there, and also secured the 

 species upon two occasions at Byfieet Canal. 



I now wish to refer to those two brilliant dragonfiies that be- 

 long to the genus Calopteryx. It was my pleasure to get both 

 Virgo and splendens ; virgo was flying commonly in Brockenhurst 

 and surrounding neighbourhood when I was there in June, but 

 lovely splendens was not to be seen in the locality. I first took 

 the last named species at Guildford on June 18th, but, as it was 

 only just emerging, I waited till July 10th, which was about the 

 hottest day we had last year ; then, having made my way to 

 Byfieet Station, I walked about two miles to a little stream. 

 Here I secured a nice series, flying along the edge of a corn- 

 field ; one of the females shews no signs of possessing the usual 

 pterostigma. 



Of the remaining twelve species of the Agrionidae, I succeeded 

 in securing eleven, Lestes dryas being the one that eluded my 

 search. However, to take them in order, I obtained a series of 

 L. sponsa in the New Forest in July. I caught but a single 

 specimen of Platyoiemis pemiipes on Ockham Common on July 

 10th. I also met with Erythromma naias upon one occasion only, 

 when I took a few flying over the Byfieet Canal on July 25th. 



The two crimson-bodied dragonfiies which belong to the 

 genus Pyrrhosonia Avere to be taken throughout June, July, and 

 part of August at the Black Pond, Esher ; but as I suppose 

 entomologists must have met these many times, I will pass on to 

 the rare Ischnura piim'dio. I am glad to report that I took this 

 on June 6th at a bog in the New Forest. It was Mr. Lucas's 

 capital work that enabled me to identify this from the commoner 

 species /. elcgans, which I caught at the same time and in the 

 same place. I should add that I found elegans in many districts, 

 but perhaps nowhere was it so common as in Richmond Park, a 

 light red variety being almost as numerous as the type. On 

 July 4th I put one of this variety in a glass- top box with a 

 normal coloured specimen. On the following morning the typical 

 elegans was very frisky, but the whole of the body of the variety 

 liad vanished, the survivor having devoured it. 



Although I captured our three species of Agrion, yet I only 



