31^ THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



fishing last summer with the finder, I, having in mind AcJuwntia atropos, 

 asked him if he remembered finding any large green caterpillars on the 

 potatoes, and when digging his patch to look out. I have been taking a 

 fair number of Xantliia gilvago at sugar in ray garden here this season. — 

 W. T. Sturt; West House, Queen's Koad, Kingston Hill, Oct. 21st, 1895. 



Sphinx convolvuli in Dorset. — A member of my family and myself 

 captured, between Aug. 12th last, and the 7th inst., fifty-one specimens of 

 S. convolvuli. Four-fifths of these were taken on a border in my flower- 

 garden, measuring about 20 yds. by 1^ yds., in which petunias and tobacco 

 plants were growing; the remainder in a garden close by. The earliest 

 taken were hovering over the petunias, but subsequently the tobacco plants 

 were most attractive. The largest specimen measures five inches from tip 

 to tip of wings, and the largest number caught in one evening was seven. 

 — Jxo. P. Hyde; The Grove, Portland, Dorset, Oct. 22nd, 1895. 



Notes on Arctia caia. — During the summer I have been breeding 

 A. caia in hopes of obtaining a variety. On Sept. 22nd a few larvae spun 

 up, although others were quite small. The remaining larvae now scarcely 

 touch their food, and are evidently preparing to hyberuate. On Oct. 4th, 

 to my great surprise, a small male emerged in my breeding cage, and on 

 the 7th another male made its appearance. Considering the fact that 

 most of the larvae have not even pupated, is not this a rather unusual 

 occurrence ? — Geo. Stanley Morley ; Oakdene, Epsom. 



[It is pretty generally known that those who rear A. caia often obtain 

 an autumnal emergence of this species, and it is said that variation more 

 frequently occurs among these autumn specimens than is the case among 

 those which emerge at the normal time. — Ed.] 



Notes on Hemiptera-Heteroptera. — On June 15th, 1893, whilst 

 sweeping among low-growing herbage at Headley Lane, I took an insect, 

 whicii 1 have only lately discovered to be a fully developed specimen of 

 Mecomma ainbulans (female). This year, at Offley, near Hitchin, on Aug. 

 17th, I took a fully developed specimen of Myrmus miriformis ; about nine 

 miles further south, close to Codicot, on Sept. 6th, a specimen of Berytus 

 crassipes, together with four specimens of Neottiylossa injiexa, — K. M. 

 Leake ; 15, Alleyn Park, S.E. 



Notes on the Lepidoptera of Salisbury. — Though 1895 appears to 

 have been a bad year for Lepidoptera, we have done fairly well with the 

 Rhopalocera. Heterocera have, as a rule, been scarce. The following are 

 our best captures this season : — At the end of May we took three speci- 

 mens of Tkecla rubi, one of Macroglossa stellatarum, and one of M. boniby- 

 liformis in some woods five miles from here. Argynnis euphrosyne 

 swarmed in the same place. I have not seen A. selene ttiis year. During 

 July 1 found A. adippe very abundant in the neighbouring woods ; A. 

 impkia was much less common, and A. aglaia very rare. I found Lasio- 

 campa quercifolia on a brick wall not far from our house. My brother 

 took a specimen of Vanessa urticce lacking the two small spots on the fore 

 wings, and corresponding to the description of the foreign variety ichnusa. 

 My sister has also taken Sphinx pinastri, and a specimen of P. brassica 

 having one fore wing bearing the female markings and the other three of 

 the male type. The body resembles that of a male. Among the best 

 Noctuse taken this season are Gonoptera libatrix (Sept. 13th), Plusia 

 chrysitis (abundant), and Polia Jiavicincta. — C. M. Gummer ; 2, Swayne's 

 Close, Salisbury, Sept. 14th, 1^95. 



