326 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



thirteen var. valesina). — Mr. Step, the fungus Bnssnla adiista, %yith 

 its parasite, another fungus, Nyctalis parasitica. — Mr. South, for Mr. 

 Baxter, a Luperina sp. ''■'- from St. Annes-on-Sea, Lanes, and read 

 notes on L. testacea and its forms and allies, and also an interesting 

 series of Peronea variegana and its named forms. — Mr. H. Moore, a 

 second brood (?) specimen of Spilosoma luhricepeda from Deptford, 

 Sept. 18th ; and two instances of Miillerian mimicry, Heliconius 

 telesiplie and Cokeiiis telesiphe, and Victorina steneles and E. dido 

 from South America. — Mr. Noad Clark read a paper "A Few Stray 

 Notes on Ticks," and showed a large number of very admirable 

 lantern-slides. — H. J. Tuener, Hon. Beport. Sec. 



RECENT LITERATUEE. 



Noctuelles et Gcometres cV Europe ; Iconographie Complete de toutes les 

 Especes Europieennes. J. Culot. Part I. Noctuelles. Geneve. 

 July, 1909. 3 fr. 75 cent, (each part). 

 We have received the first part of this work from M. Culot, and 

 have much pleasure in bringing it to the attention alike of British 

 collectors and of those interested in the more extended fauna of the 

 Continent of Europe. The work owes its inspiration to M. Charles 

 Oberthiir, of Rennes, who has already done so much splendid work 

 in figuring the Lepidoptera of the world ; and is intended to provide 

 a reliable and accurate guide to all the Heterocera included in the 

 groups under review. As scientific handbooks, there is no doubt that 

 contemporary German works leave much to be desired in the matter 

 of detailed accuracy of the plates. Produced at popular prices, it is 

 inevitable that the figures should be lacking in that refinement and 

 minute fidelity to the model which alone ensure successful identifi- 

 cation of the more perplexing and difficult genera. The processes 

 adopted by the publishers allow little scope for the artist : the often 

 subtle superficial differences of allied species are not seldom wholly 

 lost. As M. Oberthiir says in his charming preface, the ideal illus- 

 trator is the entomologist who is also a highly skilled artist, assisted 

 in the reproduction of his work by the best machinery at the disposal 

 of the printer. M. Culot, whose art is familiar to all Conti- 

 nental entomologists, most happily unites these qualifications, and 

 the two plates before us, plate i. of Noctuas, Acronyctas, &c., and 

 plate i. of Geometers |" Emeralds") are the dernier cri of hand- 

 colour engraving. M. Oberthiu' lielieves that not a few of his com- 

 patriots are deterred from extending their entomological researches 

 into the Heterocera by reason of the difficulties experienced by 

 collectors in getting their captures named and classified. " There is, 

 however," he proceeds to say, " a fortunate country where such com- 

 plaints have no raison d'etre, and that is England. Entomology 

 flourishes there ; and entomologists are ever growing more active in 

 the field, and more numerous." We have the monographs of Charles 

 Barrett and Mr. J. W. Tutt, he points out, affording abundant 

 material for the student, while many public collections are open to 



{■' Since determined as L. gtieneei, Doubleday (see antea, p. 289). — Ed J 



