272 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
which the authoress comes to the conclusion that of all the species belonging 
to different Orders examined during the severe frosts of the past winter, 
none were materially injured by the low temperatures to which they were 
subjected. Specimens in illustration of the paper were exhibited. 
Mr. Stainton remarked that although he fully agreed with Miss Ormerod 
that insects did not suffer directly from cold, yet he knew of two instances 
during the past winter in which a great loss of insect-life had ensued, owing 
to the leaves tenanted by mining larve having been killed by the severe 
frost. It was the habit of the larva of Lithocolletis messaniella to feed up 
during the winter months in the leaves of the evergreen oak (Quercus Ilex), 
and the effect of the extreme cold had been to kill the leaves of many trees 
of Q. Ilex, which were now quite leafless, although others similarly placed 
seemed to have escaped unhurt. Where a leaf containing a mining larva 
had been killed, the latter, unless capable of quitting the leaf to seek fresh 
food,—a power which no larva of the genus Lithocolletis possessed,—had 
necessarily died of starvation. On those trees of Q. Ilea which had escaped 
injury from the cold, Mr. Stainton had found that these larvae were much 
less developed than was usual at this period of the year, and hence he 
anticipated that the moths which should appear at the end of April would 
be delayed beyond their usual time. The other instance he had noticed 
was that of the larva of Tischeria marginea, which fed up during the winter 
months in the leaves of the bramble; in the neighbourhood of Lewisham 
almost every leaf of bramble had been totally killed by the frost, and of 
course the in-dwelling larvae had perished for lack of food. 
Mr. M‘Lachlan stated that it was generally believed that wet winters 
were far more destructive to insect-life than dry cold ones, however severe. 
Mr. W. Cole asked whether the insects observed by Miss Ormerod were 
actually frozen throughout, since it seemed to him improbable that the vital 
fluids in the tissues could be solidified without causing death. It was 
known that when the protoplasm of the leaves of trees was actually frozen 
the leaves were killed. 
Miss Ormerod stated that some of the larvee observed by her enclosed in 
frozen earth were in a state of brittleness when taken out, but nevertheless 
recovered on being thawed. 
Mr. M‘Lachlan was of opinion that animals might be frozen throughout 
into a state of perfect rigidity, and yet recover when thawed. He instanced 
the case of a fish which had been found in this condition imbedded in ice, 
and which had recovered on thawing. 
Mr. W. L. Distant communicated a paper containing ‘‘ Descriptions of 
new Species of Hemiptera collected by Dr. Stoliczka during the Forsyth 
Expedition to Kashgar in 1873-74,” to form portion of the general work on 
the scientific results of the Expedition, now in course of publication at 
Caleutta—R. Mrtpoua, Hon. Secretary. 
