﻿34 
  

  

  A 
  letter 
  accompanied 
  the 
  la?t-nientioned 
  donation, 
  in 
  which 
  Mr. 
  Meade 
  says 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  species 
  are 
  arranged 
  and 
  named 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  catalogue 
  recently 
  pub- 
  

   lished 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Blackwall 
  in 
  the 
  ' 
  Annals 
  and 
  Magazine 
  of 
  Natural 
  History.' 
  The 
  spe- 
  

   cies 
  are 
  mostly 
  very 
  common, 
  and 
  my 
  motive 
  in 
  sending 
  them 
  to 
  the 
  Society 
  is 
  not 
  to 
  

   present 
  them 
  with 
  anything 
  rare, 
  but 
  to 
  show 
  what 
  I 
  consider 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  best 
  method 
  

   of 
  preserving 
  specimens 
  of 
  this 
  class 
  of 
  animals, 
  which 
  cannot, 
  like 
  true 
  insects, 
  be 
  

   kept 
  dry, 
  without 
  entirely 
  losing 
  their 
  characteristic 
  forms. 
  When 
  placed 
  in 
  small 
  

   glass 
  tubes, 
  filled 
  with 
  spirit 
  of 
  wine 
  and 
  well 
  corked, 
  they 
  may 
  be 
  preserved 
  for 
  any 
  

   length 
  of 
  time, 
  and, 
  except 
  for 
  purposes 
  of 
  critical 
  examination, 
  may 
  be 
  sufficiently 
  

   seen, 
  without 
  removal 
  from 
  the 
  tube, 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  determining 
  the 
  species.'' 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Boyd 
  exhibited 
  a 
  fine 
  Vanessa 
  Antiopa, 
  and 
  specimens 
  of 
  Luperina 
  cespitis, 
  

   Depressaria 
  Carduella, 
  D. 
  rotundella, 
  D. 
  pallorella, 
  and 
  other 
  species 
  of 
  Lepidoptera, 
  

   recently 
  captured 
  in 
  the 
  Isle 
  of 
  Wight. 
  

  

  Major 
  Sheppard 
  exhibited 
  a 
  hemiaphrodite 
  Polyommatus 
  Alexis, 
  taken 
  this 
  year 
  

   in 
  Hainault 
  Forest. 
  The 
  right 
  side 
  is 
  male 
  and 
  the 
  left 
  female, 
  as 
  is 
  nsual 
  in 
  such 
  cases. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Winter 
  exhibited 
  a 
  fine 
  Choerocampa 
  Nerii, 
  taken 
  at 
  Brighton 
  ; 
  a 
  remarkable 
  

   variety 
  of 
  Spilosoma 
  Menthrasti, 
  with 
  very 
  large 
  black 
  spots 
  on 
  the 
  under 
  wings 
  ; 
  and 
  i 
  

   a 
  singularly 
  pale 
  variety 
  of 
  Oporabia 
  dilutata. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Weaver 
  exhibited 
  a 
  quantity 
  of 
  insects, 
  taken 
  by 
  him 
  this 
  year 
  in 
  Perthshire. 
  . 
  

   The 
  Coleoptera 
  included 
  Hylecoetus 
  dermestoides, 
  Dircaja 
  discolor, 
  Dyctiopterus 
  Auro- 
  

   ra, 
  Boletophagus 
  crenicoUis, 
  Aphodius 
  uliginosus. 
  Hardy, 
  A. 
  Lapponura, 
  Pytho 
  depres- 
  

   sus 
  and 
  Dendrophagus 
  crenatus. 
  Also 
  Cetonia 
  aenea, 
  bred 
  from 
  larvae 
  which 
  fed 
  in 
  ants' 
  

   nests 
  on 
  the 
  pups 
  of 
  the 
  ants 
  ; 
  the 
  cocoons 
  being 
  covered 
  with 
  small 
  bits 
  of 
  wood, 
  and 
  thus 
  . 
  

   differing 
  from 
  those 
  of 
  C. 
  aurata, 
  which 
  are 
  formed 
  entirely 
  of 
  earth. 
  Among 
  the 
  Le- 
  ■ 
  

   pidoptera 
  were 
  Oporabia 
  neglectaria, 
  O. 
  precursoria, 
  O. 
  autumnaria, 
  0. 
  proximaria, 
  O. 
  

   filigrararaaria, 
  Plemysia 
  lapidata. 
  Tinea 
  Picarella, 
  and 
  Psyche 
  opacella, 
  var. 
  ? 
  The 
  

   different 
  series 
  of 
  Oporabia 
  under 
  the 
  above 
  names 
  Mr. 
  Weaver 
  believes 
  to 
  be 
  distinct 
  

   species, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  Psyche 
  he 
  gets 
  in 
  Scotland 
  is 
  not 
  P. 
  opacella, 
  which 
  it 
  most 
  

   closely 
  resembles, 
  differing 
  in 
  the 
  males 
  being 
  larger 
  and 
  having 
  longer 
  antennae, 
  and 
  

   in 
  the 
  habits 
  and 
  formation 
  of 
  the 
  cases 
  of 
  the 
  larvae. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  F. 
  Smith 
  exhibited 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  illustrations 
  of 
  the 
  natural 
  history 
  of 
  the 
  tree- 
  

   wasp 
  (Vespa 
  Britannica), 
  among 
  which 
  the 
  President 
  drew 
  special 
  attention 
  to 
  the 
  

   fact 
  that 
  the 
  larva 
  makes 
  a 
  distinct 
  case 
  or 
  cocoon 
  within 
  its 
  cell. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Smith 
  also 
  exhibited 
  various 
  parasitic 
  insects 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  nest 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  

   wasp. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Moore 
  exhibited 
  a 
  walnut, 
  in 
  which 
  he 
  had 
  found 
  several 
  Dipterous 
  larvae 
  be- 
  

   longing 
  to 
  the 
  family 
  Muscidae, 
  some 
  of 
  which 
  he 
  had 
  reared 
  to 
  the 
  perfect 
  state. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  S.S. 
  Saunders 
  exhibited 
  some 
  Chalcididae, 
  parasitic 
  in 
  the 
  nests 
  of 
  an 
  Osmia, 
  

   and 
  some 
  Dipterous 
  parasites 
  on 
  a 
  Pompilus. 
  Also, 
  a 
  complete 
  series 
  of 
  illustrations 
  

   of 
  the 
  natural 
  history 
  of 
  six 
  species 
  of 
  Stylopidee 
  ; 
  all 
  brought 
  by 
  him 
  from 
  Albania. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Edwin 
  Shepherd 
  exhibited 
  a 
  variety 
  of 
  Lepidoptera 
  recently 
  captured 
  near 
  

   Dover, 
  including 
  Agrotis 
  saucia, 
  Heliothis 
  arraigera, 
  Hadena 
  lutulenta, 
  Spilodes 
  stic- 
  

   ticalis, 
  Depressaria 
  depressana, 
  D. 
  Pimpinellae, 
  and 
  a 
  new 
  species 
  of 
  Gelechia 
  allied 
  

   to 
  vilella. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Douglas 
  exhibited 
  the 
  larvEe 
  of 
  several 
  species 
  of 
  Neplicula, 
  mining 
  in 
  leaves 
  

   of 
  various 
  plants. 
  

  

  