OBSERVATIONS ON TINEINA. 23 



in observation recorded ; but I feel really confident in this 

 case, having taken great pains to ascertain what these larvae 

 would produce. 



" I think you will be satisfied that there could be no mis- 

 take, when I tell you — 



" 1st. That I had collected no small larvse on any Papi- 

 lionaceous plant before the first specimen of Atrella had 

 emerged. 



" 2nd. The Hypericum stems were in three diflTerent re- 

 ceptacles—a deal box, a jam-pot and a glass bottle. Of 

 these the two first certainly each produced some of the 

 fourteen or fifteen specimens I have bred, and I believe the 

 glass bottle also yielded some. Now, these receptacles were 

 cleared out before the Hypericum stems were placed in them. 

 The boXy indeed, had not been used before for larvae. But 

 even supposing that your imaginary larva, ieeding upon one 

 of the Leguminosa, had been accidentally introduced into 

 one of my cages, does it not strike you as a most remarkable 

 coincidence that the same unknown larva should have got 

 into two, if not into all three of my cages'? 



" The old stems I unfortunately threw away, and I now 

 regret that I did not examine them more closely ; but hav- 

 ing taken so much care, I did not feel any doubt on the 

 subject." 



With this explanation I think we must feel convinced that 

 the larva of Gelechia atrella does really feed on the stems of 

 Hypericum. 



* Acrolepia Vesperella, Zeller (Stettin. Ent. Zeit. 1850, 

 p. 156). This is the Acrolepia Smilaxella of Milliere 

 (Iconographie et Description de Chenilles et de Lepidopteres 

 inedits, dixieme livraison, p. 385, pi. 46, figs. 6—11). On 

 the occasion of my first walk at Cannes with Monsieur 

 Milliere, March 10th, he called my attention to the opera- 



