NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS. O7 
October 11th, while a female was taken at the same place 
on October 25th with ruddy top of head and dorsal surface 
of thorax, the latter being pale-edged, the dorsal surface of the 
closed elytra being rather pale also (Lucas). Of Chorthippus 
elegans, Charp. a female was taken at Studland Heath in August 
(Stowell). Its commoner congener, Ch. parallelus, Zett., of both 
sexes, was found mature in the New Forest on June 25th 
(Lucas). It occurred at Lochgilphead, Argyllshire, in August 
(Morton). It was reported, male, on September 12th at Rainow 
(Neave). Both sexes were obtained in the New Forest on 
September 20th. In Juniper Valley, Boxhill, it was taken of a 
rosy tint on October 10th (Lucas). It was found to occur in the 
Royal Horticultural Society’s Gardens at Wisley in 1920 
(Fox- Wilson). 
Kingston-on-Thames ; 
February, 1921. 
NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS. 
MeELITHA ATHALIA, Rott., AND M. PSEUDATHALIA, REVERDIN.— 
Dr. Reverdin has carried his investigations of the male appendages 
of M. athalia to a definite conclusion that the species hitherto 
passing under this name must be divided. Athalia is, in fact, a 
“portmanteau ’’ species, as was found also by him to be the case 
with Hesperia malve, and has long been suspected, but I believe not 
yet established, with M. phebe. In other words, a hitherto unknown 
species, which he now names pseudathalia, exists quite commonly 
over certain areas west of the great central alpine masszf, and as at 
present determined south of the Juras, and (?) the valley of the 
Loire. A full account of the discovery with woodcuts of the 
respective male appendages is published in the ‘ Bulletin de la 
Société entomologique de France,’ 1920, No. 19, and was com- 
municated to the Society at their meeting on December 8th last. 
Dr. Reverdin states that his inquiry was stimulated by Mr. Sheldon’s 
publication of the male athalia armature published in the ‘ Ento- 
mologist’s Record, 1916, p. 261, pl. iii, and our congratulations, 
therefore, are due also to Mr. Sheldon, with whom Dr. Reverdin has 
been in correspondence since he took the matter in hand. Fortu- 
nately the discovery entails no change of the nomenclature of our 
English athalia, which is identical with von Rottemburg’s species, 
nor does the new species extend to our islands. At present Dr. 
Reverdin does not claim to have discovered characters whereby to 
distinguish the two species superficially, and it now remains to 
initiate a series of breeding experiments to ascertain what differences 
are apparent in the earlier stages. Athalia has ever been some- 
thing of a puzzle to those of us whose observations have been 
made on the Continent. It is only by the collation and comparison 
of long series that it is possible, in my opinion, to arrive at a fair 
conclusion otherwise than by dissection of the appendages. But, 
just as along series of H. malve and H. malvoides in the cabinet 
presents to the eye an obvious but difficult-to-define distinctiveness 
ENTOM.—APRIL, 1921. I 
