The Zoologist — January, 1866 



Mr. F. Smith had a new hicality to nieution for Acherontia Atropos; a living 

 specimen of the moth had been that day caught in the Reading Room at the British 

 Museum. 



Mr. Dunning mentioned the capture of a specimen of Chcerocampa Celerio on 

 the 29th of September last, at Brantiiigham, near Brough, Yorkshire. It was taken 

 in the net, shortly after 6 p. m., whilst hovering over a bed of Geraniums. The captor 

 vas Mr. R. C. Kingston, the gentleman whose previous capture in 1846 of the same 

 species in the same locality, but on the flower of Physianthus albicans, was recorded 

 in the 'Zoologist' (Zool. 1863). Mr. Kingston described the flowers of the Physian- 

 thus as forming an excellent insect-trap ; they were very sweet and attractive, and on 

 the slightest touch to the stamens by the proboscis of an insect entering the nectary, 

 the stamens and anthers closed flrmly round and held the insect fast ; he had seen the 

 plant with dozens of insects upon it, amongst which Plusia Gamma was generally 

 most abundant. Mr. Kiufjston also mentiuued the abundance at Branlinnham (as 

 elsewhere during the present season) of Macroglossa Stcllatarura, and of the larviE of 

 Acherontia Atropos; and on iheSOih of September he had taken specimens of Cerastis 

 spadicea on ivy-bloom. 



Mr. M'Laclilan exhibited a female specimen of Sterrha sacraria captured near 

 Worthing on the 19lh of August last, and six specimens which had been reared by the 

 Rev. J. Hellins from eggs laid by the aforesaid female on that day. Seven eggs were 

 deposited, but one was crushed during transmission to Mr. Hellins ; the remaining 

 six all hatched on the 29ih of August, the larvae were fed on Polygonum aviculare, 

 spun up between the 19th and '23rd of September, and were all in pupa by the 30th. 

 The first moth, a female, emerged on the 15th of October, two more females on the 

 17th, a fourth female on the lyth, a male on the 25th, and lastly another male on the 

 28th of October. A full description of the ejzg, larva and ]uipa had been published 

 by Mr. Hellins (Ent. Mo. Mag. ii. 134), and a coloured drawing by Mr. Buckler of 

 several varieties of the larva was exhibited. Of the six moths thus bred not one was 

 like its mother or bore any great resemblance to what has hitherto been considered to 

 be the normal Sterrha sacraria ; they difl'ered also considerably from one another. Both 

 the males had the upper wings suffused with an exquisite rosy tint, and the under 

 wings, instead of being pure while, were clouded with fuscous ; one female had the 

 upper wings variegated with yellow and rose-colour, and the under wings yellowish ; 

 the remaining three females bad the upper wings of a delicate bufi", the obliijue trans- 

 verse stripe being blackish, and the cilia in one instance bufl', in the others rosy, whilst 

 the under wings were yellowish white. Any of these specimens, if caught at large, 

 might very pardonably have been described as a new species ; and the amount of 

 variation to wliich it now appeared that Sterrha sacraria was liable seemed to throw 

 doubt upon the specific distinctness of the several continental forms which had been 

 described as species allied to S. sacraria. In reply to enquiries, Mr. M'Lachlan stated 

 that Polygonum aviculare was not previously known to be the natural food-plant, 

 but had been given to the larvae experimentally and was eaten with avidity. M. Car) 

 Floiz had figured the larva on a species of Chamomile, but as the moth occurred in 

 all parts it must either feed on some plant of very wide distribution or more probaWy 

 was polyphagous. 



Mr. Bond exhibited four specimens of Acidalia mancuniata, Knaggs, and for com- 

 parison therewith, a series uf its nearest allies, A. subsericeata and A. stramiuata ; also 



