Pedigree Moth-breeding. 135 
Conctupine Remarxs.—I shall be very glad if the ac- 
count I have given of the experiments with the Selenias, 
and of the ease with which they can be bred, should 
lead others better qualified than I am to take up the 
subject ; and I shall be glad to supply eggs of any race 
bred. The remarkable changes which the larve undergo 
in appearance, attitude, and habits, so well described by 
Mr Poulton; the perfection to which the imitation of 
Jagged twigs has been developed in them; the great 
variation in size of individual moths, especially in the 
spring brood, and in shape; the richness and variable- 
ness of shading and colour in the wings, and their 
unusual positions when at rest, apart from other points 
to which I have already called attention, make them a 
very remarkable group, and they ought to have an 
interesting family history. The experiments I am 
trying with illunaria and illustraria will leave abundant 
scope for other investigators who may direct their 
attention to these two species, and a very interesting 
species, S. lunaria, remains. ‘Tephrosia laricaria, which 
is stated to resemble illunaria in having an early spring 
and summer emergence, and in the smaller size and 
different appearance of the latter brood, would also be 
an interesting species to work up. As to illunaria and 
illustraria, may I suggest that practical entomologists 
would be promoting the investigation by preserving any 
specimens they may meet with next spring, or a fair 
sample of them, for comparison with the numbers I 
expect to bred? I should be particularly obliged by 
being afforded any opportunity of seeing, and, if judged 
expedient, breeding from, specimens of either species 
from Scotland or Scandinavia, where they are stated to 
be single-brooded, or from Ireland, Wales, or Central or 
Southern Europe. 
(Note as to Measurement.—I find it is practicable, 
without piercing the insect, to measure the eapansion of 
wings of the chloroformed insect by setting it tem- 
porarily, with cork setting-bristles, on a flat setting- 
board covered with paper ruled in square millemetres, 
and after trial I recommend this mode decidedly as the 
more safe and certain in its results. The tips of the 
fore wings should be as widely separated as possible, so 
that the front edges of these wings will be nearly in a 
straight line. | 
