70 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 
Food-Plants of Gonepleryx Rhamni.—In reply to Mr. 
Edward A. Fitch (Entom. viii. 302), I may say that there is 
no more difficulty in obtaining the leaves of the apple and 
pear tree in Wales than there is in finding the Welsh lan- 
guage there; but the question is, are these the natural food- 
plants of Gonepteryx Rhamni in Great Britain? Mr. Fitch 
says the larve will eat apple, pear, and medlar: he may 
have bred the species upon these plants, or he may have 
obtained his information from Kaltenbach’ s ‘ Pflanzenfeinde,’ 
where medlar and the “ Pyrus-arten” are given, besides the 
buckthorns, on the authority of De Geer. Still I shall be 
glad to hear if any entomologist has ever found the eggs or 
taken the larve from either of these trees in this country. 
If so, it will satisfactorily account for the appearance of the 
butterfly in Carmarthenshire. In support of Mr. Fitch’s 
theory, it is also interesting to know that Kaltenbach in the 
same work gives almost the same additions to the food-plants 
of Lycena Argiolus. I have generally understood the food- 
plants of this butterfly to be confined to holly, ivy, and the 
two buckthorns. Kaltenbach does not mention either holly 
or ivy as food-plants of the “holly blue,” but, quoting from 
De Geer, gives R. Rhamni and R. Frangula (De Geer, i. thl. 
8 Abh. pp. 62—65), andcontinues to say, that “later observers 
have found the larve on medlar and apple.” Can any of 
your readers substantiate this statement? If so I shall be 
very glad to hear from them, either through the medium of 
your columns or otherwise.—Owen Wilson ; Carmarthen. 
The Larve of Arctia fuliginosa * (Entom. ix. 42).—I have 
perused with much interest Mr. Eccles’ letter with regard to 
the injury done to his firm’s linen, and would offer a few 
suggestions for the removal of the damaging agent. I notice 
Mr. Eccles desires to be informed how to get rid of the eggs. 
This, I think, is a mistake, as the real enemy is the cater- 
pillar; and, besides, that is the most tangible object to 
proceed against. Now, the next thing to be considered is 
what measures should be adopted for their destruction. I 
would suggest that Mr. Eccles should employ some boys for 
a few days about the middle of April to collect these cater- 
pillars, paying them so much per hundred for all they 
collect. ‘This would not, I think, be a very difficult task, as 
* Erroneously printed “rubiginosa” in the February number.—Z. Newman. 
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