290 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



distributed dragonfly in these parts and far north into Scotland " ; 

 Ischnura elegans (Chathill). The most interesting are L. depressa, of 

 which I had no definite records north of Cheshire (though De Selys 

 says it is found in all three parts of the British Isles), and /E. cyanea, 

 previous records of which north of Yorkshire needed confirmation. 

 In connection with the last it should be stated that, although the 

 specimen sent was ^. cyanea, it is quite possible that some of the 

 numbers mentioned by Mr. Bolam should be referred to its close 

 congener, ^E. jiincea, which is much more of a northern insect. — 

 W. J. Lucas ; Kingston-on-Thames. 



Visitors to Sugar. — From time to time several uninvited visitors 

 to lepidopterists' sugar have been recorded in these pages, chiefly 

 amongst the Neuroptera and Orthoptera. A few more have come 

 under my notice during 1901. Phryyanea minor was taken in the New 

 Forest on July 27th ; and Mkropterna lateralis in the New Forest in 

 August ; while the little cockroach Ectobia panzeri occurred freely at 

 Dawlish in the middle of August. At Dawlish also there were con- 

 siderable nunibers of a brown insect belonging to the I'hysanura, 

 while in the New Forest two species of Myriapoda were noticed. — 

 W. J. Lucas ; Kingston-on-Thames. 



Larv^ of Cassida equestris feeding on Hemp-nettle. — Towards 

 the end of July, Mr. Step gave me some larvae and pupaj of a species 

 of Cassida which he had found on Wisley Common feeding on hemp- 

 nettle [Galeopsis tetrahit). I succeeded in rearing the specimens, which 

 it was thought would turn out to be one of the uncommon species of 

 Cassida ; they however proved to be C. equestris. I do not think it is 

 known that this species feeds on Galeopsis. Fowler gives its food- 

 plant as species of Mentha, or mint. The specimens were only six 

 days in the pupa. — S. W. Kemp. 



Notes on Vanessa io and V. cardui. — It would be somewhat 

 interesting to know the reason of Vanessa io being less abundant, 

 especially in some districts, than either V. atalanta or V. urticcs. 

 Feeding as the larvfe do on the nettle so often abundantly distributed 

 as a weed, and at times when both those other insects may be com- 

 monly seen, it seems difficult to account for the non-appearance of this 

 butterfly. According to my own experience, it certainly seems to rather 

 favour some districts more than others at the present day. In many a 

 secluded valley in Wales, in some quiet combe of Somerset or Devon, 

 there I have seen it in moderate numbers, season after season, when I 

 I heard of its non-appearance in other localities apparently quite as 

 favourable to its production — and that, too, when urtica; and atalanta 

 have been abundant. In Glamorganshire, Carmarthenshire, Cardigan, 

 Montgomeryshire, Brecon, and Merioneth, I have seen both larvae, 

 these especially abundant at times, and the imago for several seasons. 

 But I well remember, when a lad, that the " Peacock," as we then 

 called it, used frequently to appear in gardens in Wiltshire in the early 

 autumn at the blossoms of the asters and other flowers. Can the cause 

 for this apparent scarcity arise from any ichneumon parasite attacking 

 the larvse being more abundant in some districts than others? or 

 may the imagines be more delicate, and perhaps perish during their 



