29 



room. I was not, however, satisfied that the warmth was 

 sufficient, and so on December 20th (just over a week 

 after I received them) I removed the pan into the kitchen, 

 and stood it on the top of a cupboard beside the hot-water 

 pipes that supply a bath. Here the temperature appeared 

 to be all that could be desired, but I found that the moss 

 became too dry. To overcome this difficulty the pan was 

 stood upon a soup plate filled with water, and I then found 

 that the conditions that I had aimed at were working quite 

 satisfactorily. On January i8th a fine perfect moth emerged, 

 and on the 20th another, and I began to feel hopeful of suc- 

 cess. On the 23rd a badly crippled moth appeared, and 

 that was the end of my experiment. On opening several of 

 the remaining pupae a month or so later I found in every 

 case that the moth appeared to be fully formed ; but the 

 abdomen was empty, a mere hollow shell, a point that has 

 puzzled me considerably, but for which I have, at present, 

 been unable to find any satisfactory solution." 



Mr. Carpenter suggested that perhaps the pupae had been 

 kept too hot. He also had failed, but thought it was because 

 in his case the larvae were very late in feeding up. 



Mr. Pearce had been very successful with his pupae. He 

 had a perforated tin with loose soil at the bottom, some two 

 gallons in amount. Then he placed a layer of two inches of 

 moss, with moss all round. The larvae were laid on the moss, 

 which was kept moist. The tin was kept inside the fender 

 of a fire which was burning ordinarily during the day. 

 Most of the pupae yielded moths in November, but one went 

 over December, and was put aw^ay in an outhouse. From 

 the latter a perfect imago emerged in the following June. 



Mr. Adkin said that it seemed if one wished to force the 

 pupae it should be commenced early. It would seem that in 

 nature the early stage of the pupae would be at a fairly warm 

 temperature. 



Mr. Montgomery said that it was the custom of the late 

 Mr. Young, of Rotherham, to leave the pupae of this species 

 in the earth in which they had pupated ; and they, as a rule, 

 emerged in due course the following June. 



The President remarked that he once had a pupa, which 

 was placed in a vase on a mantelpiece, and from which there 

 emerged a perfect imago at the normal time in the following 

 year. 



Mr. Montgomery exhibited a larva of Charaxcs jasiiis, sent 

 to him by Dr. Chapman from Cannes, and from which a 

 Gordius had extruded. 



