NOTKS AND OBSERVATIONS. 17 



(which was the only island he visited) passed through his hands and 

 there were no cxidans amongst them. The only inference that can 

 be drawn is that the specimens were incorrectly labelled by someone 

 before I obtained them, and this would appear to finally dispose of 

 the likelihood of N. Shetlands as a locality for e.vulans. — B. S. 

 CuRWEN ; 9, Lebanon Park, Twickenham. 



Hibernation of Aglais urtic-e. — Notes on this subject have 

 already appeared in the last volume of the ' Entomologist,' from 

 Mr. Eowland-Brown (pp. 68 and 137) and from the Rev. H. D. Ford 

 and myself (pp. 89 and 90), dealing with the early hibernation of the 

 species in 1918. I am tempted to raise the topic again, for the past 

 year seems to have provided a similar phenomenon — at least, so far as 

 I was able personally to ascertain. Foraging over a tract of country 

 extending from Berkhamsted Common to Watford in the one direction, 

 and from Chesham to St. Albans in the other, on September 27th, 28th 

 and 29th, I did not see a single example of urticce — a circumstance 

 of considerable singularity, for all three days provided genial weather, 

 and the species has always been common in Hertfordshire, and upon 

 the Bucks, border extremely so. For years past 1 have seen the 

 insect on the wing to well into October, and it is difficult to suggest 

 an adequate reason for its early disappearance in 1918 and 1919. 

 Is urticce developing the tendency, so pronounced in G. rhamni, of 

 seeking winter quarters immediately on its attaining the imago state, 

 or are we to assume the clerk of the weather is the guiding spirit of 

 its actions '? Urticce made a x'ather tardy emergence this summer in 

 Hertfordshire, which is sufficiently remarkable considering the glorious 

 weather of the first half of August, and further, its numerical strength 

 did not seem to be up to the average. Isolated and perfectly fresh 

 examples were met with in the latter half of August, bat the cold 

 snap which set in may have had something to do with the September 

 absence. If, however, we admit the validity of the weather theory, 

 how does it come about that it has taken lantil the present time to 

 be made manifest? It would be absurd to suggest that urticce has 

 become constitutionally delicate while other butterflies are braving 

 the perils of "Indian summer" — Pieris rapes wsis out in profusion 

 on September 27th, and at least two Pyrameis atalanta were seen on 

 Michaelmas Day. Several Pieris rapce and one Rumicia plilceas were 

 noticed on Sunday, October 19th, but again A. urticce was an absentee. 

 —Ernest W. N immy, F.E.S. ; 210, Whippendell Road, Watford, Herts. 



Aglais urticce. — With reference to Mr. Rowland-Brown's 

 remarks on this species my experience was somewhat different to 

 his. Hibernated specimens were plentiful in early spring, as he has 

 observed, but though we enjoyed the April blizzard to its full extent 

 I noted iirticce still in numbers after it, and have never seen a better 

 crop of the larvse than this summer produced. But, like Mr. Brown, 

 I have seen no imagines wild this autumn, and thought it a little 

 strange, as I bred a good many, every one emerging and none being 

 ichneumoned, so the larvae were all right. P. atalanta also was very 

 scarce here. Has anyone noticed a scarcity of winter moths ? In 

 most years (except, of course, during the war) my window is visited 

 by shoals of Brumata ?^n(\.Y>^ex\ty oi Aurantiaria, Defoliaria, Pennaria, 

 and P. populi. This year I have seen perhaps half a dozen Brumata, 



ENToM. JANUARY, 1920. C 



