142 



the destroyer, looked apparently healthy ; but a close in- 

 spection showed that in the divisional segments of the pupal 

 body, just traces, more or less, of white thread-like spots could 

 be seen, and the pupa was stiff and could be snapped asunder 

 like a damp rotten stick, quite solid-looking, and filled up 

 in centre, from which you could readily cut transverse or 

 longitudinal sections for microscopic investigation. When 

 these segments were examined under a fairly high power, 

 one-eighth of an inch, all trace of healthy pupal growth ap- 

 peared lost and entirely changed in cliaracter. The mycelium 

 of the fungus, which liad destroyed the vitality of the pupa, 

 had, too, entirely altered its appearance. At first I thought 

 that the fungus might have oeen introduced into the larvae 

 by their food, but further experience tends to prove, rather 

 that the sporangia of the fungus were in the soil, and only 

 awaited a fitting host to germinate, which was found in the 

 certata pupa. I afterwards placed some pupae of Gortyna 

 ochracea, Hb. (jiavago, Esp.), that I had collected from bur- 

 dock stems in quite another district on some of the same soil 

 that certata had been in. Those pupae oi jiavago that were 

 near emerging came out unaffected, but all the later speci- 

 mens were killed by the fungus ; thus pretty well showing 

 that the fungus must have been introduced by the soil. A 

 thought occurred to me as to whether these spores, which 

 could be cultivated or propagated in any quantity, might not 

 be used to destroy noxious and injurious larvs ? There is 

 little doubt but that the fungus would destroy any quantity." 



Mr. C. G. Barrett exhibited a variety of Argynnis aglaia, 

 L., taken in Norfolk by Dr, Wheeler ; two specimens of 

 Lyccena argiades. Pall., taken on Bloxworth Heath in 1885, 

 by Mr. C. O. Pickard-Cambridge and Mr. A. Pickard-Cam- 

 bridge ; and blackish specimens of Aplecta nebulosa, Hufn., 

 reared by Mr. Collins of Warrington, from larvae collected in 

 Delamere Forest, and named by him var. Robsoni, 



Mr, R. Adkin again exhibited the specimens of the Tortrix 

 which Mr. Carpenter had named donelana, and remarked that 

 it had been stated in a report of a previous meeting that he 

 had exhibited these specimens as Tortrix steineriana var. 

 dohrniana ; he had, however, when exhibiting them, said he 

 considered them to be Tortrix viburnana. He also now 

 exhibited a specimen of the variety dohrniana from Dr. 

 Staudinger. 



Mr. C. G. Barrett exhibited examples of Tortrix steineriana, 

 and examples of T. viburnana and its varieties, and stated that 

 he had been in correspondence with Mr. Carpenter on this 



