128 THE entomologist's kecord. 



abundant as in England, P. cardui literally swarming about the cherry 

 and other fruit-trees planted by the road-side, whilst walking through 

 the clover fields caused them to rise in clouds. More abundant still 

 was P. (jamma, which Avas in enormous numbers and almost put out 

 the lights at night if the windows were left open. Snell reports that 

 they were equally abundant in the Western Highlands as in the south 

 of England. 



Hall noted P. (jamma as exceedingly abundant at Deal, in the 

 spring of 1883, and also P. cardui, but whilst the descendants of the 

 former were in great force in the autumn, those of the latter were 

 rather rare, possibly due to the bad weather experienced in June in 

 that district. Barrett notes that in Pembrokeshire P. (jamma and P. 

 card\d had been as abundant as elsewhere in 1879, that in the following 

 years they were absent or very scarce, and that although not a single 

 P. cardui was observed in the autumn of 1882, in May, 1883, P. (jamma 

 suddenly appeared in swarms, and ten days later P. cardui similarly 

 was noticed in great abundance. The P. jamma were more slate- 

 coloured than those bred in the country, and the specimens of P. cardui 

 also were pale. Here, too, as at Deal, P, jcwuua was abundant in the 

 autumn, but P. cardui rare, owing, also, to the bad weather in June. 

 In 1889 Carrington observed that, previous to June 1st, he had not 

 seen a single P. cardui or P. jamma, although he had been regularly 

 on the look-out, but, on that day, one P. cardui was seen, and by the 

 3rd hundreds of the species were everywhere as also P. jamma; the 

 numbers gradually lessened during the week, probably due to dispersal. 

 A steady south-east wind had been blowing for three days previous to 

 June 1st. Many active collectors will remember the great influx of 

 both species in 1894. Among many other observers Walker notes 

 [Ent. Mo. Maj., xxx., p. 162), in June, 189-4, the sudden appearance 

 of P. cardui and P. jamma in considerable numbers. On the thistles, 

 in bloom on the sea-wall in the Isle of Sheppey, on the morning of 

 June 17th, he observed two or three specimens of P. cardui on each 

 flower, and, in the hayfields, a little way inland, Plusia jamma was 

 equally common, getting up out of the grass as one walked along the 

 path. The specimens of both species were worn and faded but not 

 apparently torn or broken, and their appearance suggested a consider- 

 able immigration, whilst during the preceding autumn P. cardui had 

 been rare, and P. jamma less common than usual. No examples had 

 been seen previously to that date on which they were first so abundant, 

 except a single P. cardui at Chatham, on June 14th. Bankes observes 

 (loc. cit., p. 210) that he noticed the sudden appearance of P. cardui 

 in Purbeck, in abundance, on June 4th of the same year, whilst the 

 preceding year it was entirely absent from the neighbourhood. 



As we have already stated, these are only isolated examples of 

 dozens of similar records that are to be found scattered throughout our 

 magazines. No one has yet attempted to explain the conditions that 

 usually result in the immigration of these very difterent species at the 

 same time, and apparently under identical conditions. 



(pRTHOPTERA. 



Mackopterous variety of Xiphidium dorsale, Latr. — I captured 

 what Mr. Burr has provisionally determined as a macropterous variety 



