87 



the crrouiid colour was deep yellow, and known as var. amantiaca : 

 and that the habit of the species on the continent, where it persist- 

 ently frequented the summits, such as the Rigi, Burgenstock, 

 Riffilalp, etc., was very different from its habit in this country, 

 where its habitat is restricted to the more extensive marsh-land of 

 the eastern counties. 



Mr. F. W. Frohawk exhibited several varieties of Melitaa athalia, 

 M. oi'vinia and M. cinxia. Among these was a melanic var. of M. 

 athalia, captured at Chattenden, in 1866, by the late T. W. Wood. 

 Another was M. athalia ab. eos, captured by himself, on .June 23rd, 

 1907, and described and figured in " The Entom.," vol. xl, 1907, 

 p. 193. The ab. is similar to one captured at Peckham, in 1803, 

 which was figured in Stephens' " Illustrations of Brit. Entom.," 

 vol. i., 1828, and copied in Westwood's "Brit. Butts.," 1841. It 

 was again figured in "The Entom." 36 years ago, and made several 

 appearances at Stevens' Auction Rooms, the last time on March 

 27th, 1900. The specimen exhibited was a more perfect and very 

 beautiful example of this aberration, being further removed from 

 typical athalia : but in other respects it was almost identical with 

 the Peckham capture. A M. aurinia male, wtth aberrational upper- 

 side, bred June 3rd, 1905, from the eggs of a Walmer Forest parent, 

 and a female of the same species with aberrational underside, bred 

 June 17th, 1898, from a larva found at Penarth. This example 

 was figured and described in " The Entom.," January, 1894. 

 Five undersides of M. cinxia, including a male with asymmetrical 

 pattern, the median pale band of the hindwings being spotted on 

 one side and plain on the other, and other markings were also 

 dissimilar ; three other examples were heavily spotted, and in one 

 some of the basal marks were missing and so constituting a light 

 variety. 



Mr. Frohawk also showed a series of nine drawings in colour of 

 choice varieties, among them albino Ari/i/nni» adi/ipe, albino Enchlo'e 

 cardaiiiines, melanic Brenthis selene, and a curiously asymmetrical 

 Pii'ria rapcE, in which the usual black markings were almost 

 wanting on the right forewing, whilst they were well developed on 

 the left. 



Mr. A. W. Buckstone reported that in breeding Fhirjalia pedaria 

 he had found a male paired with a female within five minutes of 

 emergence, and before the wings were expanded. Mr. Sich remarked 

 that he had similar experience of silkworm moths {Boi/ibyx nwii) 

 pairing immediately after emergence from the pupae. 



