218 THE entomologist's record. 



Fowler^s says it is found in sandy places, by sweeping heath, etc., 

 and gives the then known British distribution. He mentions " Lewes, 

 in and about ants' nests," from Morris's record ; but it was not yet 

 realised that this Lady-Bird was only to be found with ants. 



Donisthorpe^'' recorded it with Formica riifa in 1895, and in 1896 

 he^o gave it as one of the regular guests of that ant. 



Wali^er^i found it in fair numbers in the Blean Woods in 1897, 

 *' chiefly on young shoots of oak and birch in the vicinity of nests of 

 Formica riifa." 



Champion^s captured two specimens in 1903, at Woking, in the pine 

 woods, running on the ground in company with Formica rufa. 



The late W. E. Sharp, in one of his last letters to me, told me he 

 took some four or five specimens in the runs of F. rufa, in July, 1915, 

 at Crowthorne. 



The above (with the exception of the rest of my own rather 

 numerous records 22 24 25 26 27-29 31 33 34 35 3637 38 39 40 41 

 *''') appear to be the only occasions when it has been published as 

 being found with ants in Britain. 



On the continent it is probable that the single example of C. 

 l-punctata recorded from Finland, in 1843, as being taken with F. 

 rufa by Mannerheim^, may have been really C. diUincta. The first 

 real record (and the only one as far as I am aware) of this Lady-Bird 

 being attached to ants on the continent is by Wasmann^s, in 1912. He 

 writes : — 



" I have convinced myself that it belongs to the 



regular myrmecophiles. In 1900 H. Donisthorpe reported its regular 

 presence with Formica riija at Weybridge, in England. He also made 

 experiments with it, and noted that it was indifferently treated by the 

 ants, while the very similar septetiipunctata was attacked by them. In 

 the neighbourhood of Luxemburg town I found during the last ten 

 years Coccinella ilistincta, but only always in the close neighbourhood 

 of ants' nests. With Formica truncicola it was commonest, a little 

 rarer with t . pratensis, with Pohjergus rufescens with F. rufibarbis as 

 slaves, with Myrmica laevinodis and C'amj)onotiis lif/nij)er(la." It is true, 

 he states, that in 1894 [Krit. TV?-. Mi/r. Ter. ^?t.'(1894)] he held "its 

 presence with ants only to "be accidental " ; but as a matter of fact he 

 never mentioned it by name, and only wrote of the Coccinellidae (I.e., p. 

 161) : " Regular myrmecophiles of this family are not known to me 

 ♦with certainty." 



I first captured C. distincta on March 29th, 1894, in tbe High 

 Woods at Bexhill, when it was crawling on the hillocks of Formica 

 rufa, and sheltering under dead leaves on the nests ; and I have found 

 it with this ant in various other localities, and continuously at Wey- 

 bridge ever since. In the last named locality it has occurred in every 

 month in the year, on the nests and all trees and plants (Scots fir, 

 birch, oak, sallow, and heather, etc.) in their vicinity, and also flying 

 round the ants' hillocks, often in company with Clyihra quadri punctata 

 in hot sunny weather. I give a complete list from m}^ myrmeco- 

 philous note books, of all the localities and dates I have seen the beetle 

 in nature. 



In company with Formica rufa, Bexhill, 29. iii. 1894. Weybridge, 

 28. ix. 1894 : 19. iii. 1895 : 20. iv. 1895 : 29. v. 1895 : 20. iii. 1897. 

 Blean Woods, 11. v. 1901. Pamber Forest, 20. iv. 1902. W^eybridge, 



