278 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



spade of the man who found it. Those I saw were all full fed or 

 nearly so. One was found walking across a large tennis lawn. I 

 have seen no Colias editsa here this year, but during tlie hot days a 

 fortnight ago Pyramais carditi was rather in evidence in the clover 

 fields and also in gardens, where it was attracted by standard helio- 

 tropes; all those I saw appeared to be rather worn. P. atalaiita has 

 been unusually abundant, and is still (September 23rd) in beautiful 

 condition ; it is always a common species in gardens here during the 

 first weeks of September, and is also often plentiful nearer the coast. 

 Last week we had three or four extremely cold days, and I found 

 many torpid Atalanta sitting on the dahlia flowers, always choosing 

 the red, or red and orange blossoms. Perfectly fresh Polyomviatus 

 icarus were seen when out partridge driving on the 19th. — 

 Gerard H.Gurney ; Keswick Hall, Norwich. 



Dragonflies bred in 1914. — This year I have bred Brachylron 

 l^ratense (one female) from a nymph found early in June, 1913, in 

 the Ouse, near St. Ives, Huntingdon. The dragonfly emerged on (or 

 about) May 12th. jEschna grandis, from nymphs taken in the 

 canal at Byfleet last year, and from one taken in the canal, near 

 Purton, Wiltshire, early this surnmer; Libellula quadrimaculata, 

 from nymph taken at Byfleet this summer; Sympetrum striolaium, 

 from nymphs taken in canal near Purton ; Calopteryx virgo (Ober- 

 water stream. New Forest) ; Lestes sponsa, male (Byfleet Canal) ; 

 Enallagma cyathigerum ; Agrion puella ; Pyrrliosoma nymp)hula. I 

 found imagines of P. nympliula in one of my aquaria (they are 

 fitted with a kind of gauze case) on my return to town after a week- 

 end away in the last week of April. They were not from nymphs 

 collected this year, for at that time I had not yet been out for 

 nymphs this season, and I was not aware that I had put any 

 P. nympliula in that aquarium last year. But I had put in a good 

 many Zygopterid nymphs (mainly Erythromma naias and Isclinura 

 clegans) in early summer, 1913. Some of them must have been 

 only partly grown P. nympliula; I have found the same thing 

 happen before with this species, but with no other Zygopterid ; the 

 nymphs of every other Zygopterid dragonfly I have ever taken have 

 always emerged in the year in which they were taken (in May or 

 June). Only P. nympliula have remained in the nymph stage over 

 the following winter. None of the nymphs could have been hatched 

 in the year that I took them (mostly in May) ; for that year's 

 nymphs would either not have been hatched at all by then or would 

 be very small. They must presumably all have been already nearly 

 a year in the nymph stage ; when taken, so that the P. nympliula 

 that came out in the summer after must have been about two years 

 in that stage. There seems to be great uncertainty as to the average 

 duration of that phase of a dragonfly's life. With Cordulegaster 

 annidalun it is a long stage ; I doubt if it is ever less than two years. 

 I have a nymph of that species now, taken in May last. The egg 

 can liardly have been laid later than August, 1913 ; and the imago will 

 not emerge until June, 1915. This w^ould be a little under two years. 

 But from the size of the nymph when taken, it may well have been 

 hatched early in July, 1913, and even not in 1913 at all, but in 1912. 

 I should like to ask if others have found Calopteryx virgo as difficult 



