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NOVEMBER loik, 1898. 



Mr. J. W. Tu TT, F.E.S., President, in the Chair. 



The evening was devoted to a special exhibition of varieties 

 of all orders. 



Mr. F. J. Robinson exhibited, on behalf of Mr. A. H. 

 Jones, of Eltham, specimens of the following species : 



Melanargia galatea, having the irregular white band across 

 the centre of the wing wide, and more than usually con- 

 spicuous ; Argynnis paphia, var. valesina, in which the basal 

 spots are confluent ; Lycana corydon, a light brown female 

 example ; Xanthia aiirago, nearly unicolorous ; Ephyra pen- 

 dularia, red suffusion on wing ; Thais cerisyi, female, a 

 melanic form from Armenia; and Argynnis pales, var. 

 arsilache, taken in the Engadine. 



Mr. Robinson also exhibited gynandromorphous specimens 

 of Cleora lichenan'a and Cvocallis elingnaria from the New 

 Forest. In both cases the right side was female and the 

 left male, even to the genitalia. 



Mr. D. Chittenden exhibited among others — 



Agrotis segetum, a black variety ; A. exclamationis, a very 

 pale form and a red form ; A. corticea, several dark varieties ; 

 Anchocelis lunosa, a reddish form and a black form ; Xanthia 

 aurago, a varied series showing red forms, yellow forms with- 

 out the inner band, pink forms and dark forms ; Dianthcecia 

 carpophaga, a white variety. 



Mr. Williams exhibited long series of Pararge egeria and 

 A mphidasys hetularia, and read the following notes : 



" Pararge egeria. — The series of this insect shown to-night 

 have been, with the exception of the few labelled New 

 Forest, bred by myself from ova. 



"The ova were deposited on July 27th, 1892, and hatched 

 on August 7th. One larva showed signs of feeding up long 

 before the others, and made such progress that it pupated 

 on September ist, the butterfly emerging on the igth, a 

 female. The remaining larvae reached the pupal stage 

 during the last fortnight of September. At that time I was 

 not aware, and I think it was not generally known, that this 

 species could pass the winter as'apupa, and therefore, think- 

 ing they would probably perish unless the imagines were 

 forced to emerge at once, I determined to subject them to 

 various temperatures by way of experiment. Some pupae 

 were exposed to a high dry heat, some to a high temperature 

 but saturated with moisture, and a third batch were placed 



