126 Revieivs and Book Notices. 



'The Lepidoptera of the British Islands.' C. G. Barrett, F. E.S. 

 Vol. VIII. London : Lovell Reeve & Co. 1902. This is a further 

 contribution to the histories of the Geometrina, and comprises the largfe 

 families Acidaliidce and Larentidce. The numerous species are treated in 

 the same exhaustive manner as in the previous volumes, the life histories, 

 descriptions of local and casual variation, &c. , being- almost everything: 

 that can be desired. In a few species the matter is not quite up to date, as 

 in the case, for instance, oi Hypsipetes elii/afa, where little is said about the 

 striking' forms of the South-west Yorkshire moors, where probably the 

 most beautiful forms in Britain occur, and where the rang-e of variation is 

 infinite. We notice the same omission, too, reg^arding- the striking- forms 

 of Cidaria immanata and C. riissata which occur in the same district, and, 

 so far as we know, nowhere else in Britain. True, some of the forms are 

 figured in the coloured plates representing- the species ; but as one edition 

 of the book is without plates there is, of course, in it no allusion to them. 

 The coloured plates are for the most part excellent, thoug-h here and there 

 the 'browns' are a little too pronounced. Owe or two errors, too, have 

 crept in, as in the fig-ures of Of^orabia filigranimnria, where an extraordinary 

 buff-coloured variety from Dunford Bridg-e, Yorkshire, and belong-ing; to 

 a Yorkshire lepidopterist, is credited to a London entomologist, and 

 vice 7>ersa. Still, these are minor matters, and detract comparativel}' little 

 from the value of the work. Yorkshire lepidopterists, too, will be glad to 

 find that specimens from their county figure fairly larg-ely in the illustrations. 

 Altogether the book, so far as it has gone, is by far the best of its kind we 

 have, and will probably remain such for many years to come. When com- 

 pleted, it will be too expensive for possession by the majority of lepidopterists, 

 but for that reason it oug;ht to be on the shelves of every Free Library, and, 

 of course still more so, in the library of every Natural History Society and 

 Field Club.— G. T. P. ' 



•♦♦ 



Catalogue of the Lepidoptera of Northumberland, Durham, and New- 

 castle-upon-Tyne. By John E. Robson, F. E.S. The first part of this list 

 appeared in May 1899; and we have now received the second part, which 

 has just been issued. To call the work a catalog-ue or list, however-, is 

 somewhat misleading-, as in reality it is a g^ood deal more than either. An 

 account — forming- almost a short chapter — is g-iven of each species, repre- 

 senting;, we suppose^ nearly all that is known of it in the large area treated 

 of. We say ' nearly all,' because we feel sure a g^ood deal must also be 

 known on a subject in which almost every lepidopterist is now specially 

 interested, but which is larg^ely neglected in this work. We allude to ' local 

 variation.' We know of course that the extraordinary melanism in so 

 many species which seems to be so rapidly spreading- and increasing- in 

 Yorkshire and Lancashire, has not yet made itself felt to any extent in the 

 more northern counties ; but that very inan}' of the species in Northumber- 

 land and Durham do differ considerably from their brethren in southern 

 counties, especially where there is but little melanism, we have no doubt, 

 and a comparison with these would have been not only interesting but 

 extremely valuable. At the same time, as the general information given on 

 each species g-oes far beyond what is found in most county lists, it may have 

 been deemed inadvisable to still further extend it. The first part of the 

 work reached to the end of the Noctuina ; the second part is devoted 

 entirely to the Geometrina. The Micro-lepidoptera are still to chronicle, 

 but when completed, we think, the catalogue will rank among- the best of 

 our county lists. When it is finished we shall hope to notice it again in a 

 critical comparison with the 'List of Yorkshire Lepidoptera,' the supplement 

 to which will, we iiope, by that time also have been published. — G. T. P. 



• ♦• 



An account of the fish in the freshwater aquarium, the Dobree collection 

 of Noctuae, etc., appears in Hull Museum Publications, No. 12, just issued. 

 (A. Brown & Sons, Hull, id.) 



Naturalist, 



