193 



CAPTURES AND FIELD REPORTS. 



AcHERONTiA ATROPOs IN Saltaire. — On May 15th I had a specimen 

 of A. atropos brought to me by a friend, be having taken it in a street 

 in Saltaire. — Sam Hainsworth ; 14, Dove Street, Saltaire. 



Notes on Plusia moneta, &c. — For the third year in succession, 

 including this season, I have successfully reared large numbers of this 

 species, to the advantage of numerous correspondents and, of course, 

 my own collection. They have all been taken within a mile or so of 

 this neighbourhood, and mostly in cottage gardens. The best time to 

 secure the larvffi is in the early spring, immediately its food-plant 

 begins to show through ; and I have found that the easiest way to rear 

 them is to place the larvae on growing plants in the garden and leave 

 them alone, but it is necessary to protect them from birds — ichneumoned 

 they rarel} are — and in order to do this I procure a cheese-box, knock 

 the bottom out, fit a "sleeve" of muslin or leno to the remaining sides, 

 and place it over the plant, embedding the round box-sides into the 

 earth, push a long stick into the centre of the plant, place the larvae 

 on same, bunch the material round the cane above them, and tie with 

 tape. The whole thing then has the appearance of a miniature tent. I 

 might add, en pasmnt, that many other low-feeding larvffi can be success- 

 fully reared in this manner, especially Apamea opliioijramma. While 

 P. moneta is getting more plentiful, I notice that P. chrysitis is becoming 

 scarcer. I have not taken one for three years now, near London ; 

 indeed, I have not even seen one in the wild state alive during that time, 

 and I know of other collectors who have noted the same thing. Why 

 is this, I wonder ? It was formerly very common everywhere. In 

 conclusion, I should just like to warn rearers of P. moneta that the 

 house sparrow looks upon the larvffi and pupae as a great delicacy ; I 

 noticed quite a dozen of these mischievous little scavengers, twittering 

 and dodging in and out of a large plant of Aconitiim last week. Being 

 suspicious of their doings, I got permission from the owner of the 

 garden, and overhauled the plant to find the cause of the excitement, 

 and, lo ! cocoons of P. )iwneta, literally torn from the leaves and the 

 pupae extracted, some of which were lying on the ground in a very 

 mutilated condition. A great number, I have no doubt, perish in this 

 way. — A. J. Lawrance ; 76, Samos Road, Anerley, S.E. 



Diptera, Coleoptera, &c., at Hastings. — At Whitsuntide I spent 

 seven days at Hastings, and took the opportunity of collecting what 

 few Diptera the rain had not washed away ; but the effect of the con- 

 tinual rains was painfully apparent, and though species were propor- 

 tionately numerous, examples were the reverse. Most of my collection 

 being packed away, I could only identify some of my captures. I 

 worked Ecclesbourne Glen three times for about three hours on each 

 occasion, and once collected on the outskirts of the town. Amongst 

 the higher Diptera I took four Dioctria rufipes, two Chlorosiafnrmom, 

 a Hilara and an Empu, an An/yra, and two or three other Dolichopods. 

 In Syrphidae I took a small series of Syrjjhus tricinctus (females only), 

 S. luniger (three), showing both the orange and bright yellow forms; 

 iS. ribesii, rather commonly in both sexes, from which species I have 



ENTOM. — JULY, 1903. Q 



