268 THE entomologist's record. 



Egg-laying and food-plants of Macrothylacia rubi. — The eggs of 

 M. rubi are, in this district, ordinarily laid in a more or less cylindrical 

 group round a stout grass stem, generally a few inches from the base, and 

 June rarely passes without my noticing a few such clusters. On these 

 chalkhills the larva prefers the lesser burnet as a food-plant, refusing 

 bramble for it, but locality appears largely to modify its habits, for in 

 September, 1897, the larvfe were abundant at the tops of the tall Devon- 

 shire hedges near Dartmouth, where I repeatedly saw them select hazel 

 as a food-plant. I also found them feeding at large near Wiesbaden 

 on bramble and dwarf sallow. — E. M. Prideaux, 103, Eeigate Hill, 

 Eeigate. June 29th, 1900. 



Egg-laying of Macsoglossa stellatartoi. — From July 10th to July 

 20th, this species was abundant on the south Devon coast where I 

 repeatedly had the opportunity of watching it egg-laying on Galium 

 vwllugo while hovering on the wing. The insect selects the top of a 

 flowering spray as a rule, carefully examining it before depositing an 

 egg. Eejected sprays, on being subsequently searched, were found to 

 have been previously bespoken for the purpose. I have never found 

 two eggs of this species laid on the same panicle of the plant, though 

 ova of Antidca rubidata, and probably those of the genus Mclanippe, 

 were commonly found near those of ill. stellatarum. The green 

 globular egg of the latter, though large, is not a very conspicuous 

 object amongst the masses of round buds of the Galium, on which it 

 is deposited usually ; but I have occasionally found it laid on one of 

 the upper whorls of leaves. The egg period lasted only seven days ; 

 the newly-hatched larva hangs by a thread when disturbed. — E. M. 

 Prideaux, Eeigate, Surrey. July 2ith, 1900. 



Food-plants and siode of feeding of larvae of Callophrys 

 rubi. — On June 11th, last year, when examining twigs of jRhamyius 

 catharticus, a few Lycasnid ova were detected, usually, but not 

 invariably, deposited at the base of the calyx. These were hastily 

 assumed to be those of Cyaniris aryiolus, Rhamnus being a recorded 

 food-plant of the latter species, and the initial mistake was well 

 supported by the method of feeding of the young larva^ which cleared 

 out the contents of the immature berries of the buckthorn by means 

 of holes drilled in the sides, precisely in the manner of C. argiolus 

 when feeding on ivy. Subsequently the larvae revealed themselves as 

 being those of Callophrys rubi, taking as readily to the berries of 

 Cornus sanriuinea, when a change of locality rendered the buckthorn 

 unprocurable. I have frequently reared this species on Leyuminoseae 

 such as clover and Lotus, under which conditions they fed from first 

 to last entirely on the flowers. An examination of the same buck- 

 thorn bush, this year, has again revealed the presence of C. rubi ova, 

 so it seems to be a food-plant regularly selected by the parent insect. — 

 E. M. Prideaux, Eeigate, Surrey. August lith, 1900. 



;Mode of egg-laying of Cyaniris argiolus, with a note on the 

 mode of feeding of the larva. — Ova and larvfe of this species were 

 commonly found on immature ivy-umbels, during August of last year, 

 the succeeding butterflies being unusually abundant this spring in 

 the Eeigate and Dorking district, the first recorded specimen being 

 seen at the latter place on April 21st. Many of the eggs found last 

 summer developed minute parasites, and two pupa? out of about two 

 dozen, kept during the winter, produced the Listrodromus mentioned 



