205 



they belong. The subscribers to this work should be numbered by 

 hundreds instead of tens. I trust the time is approaching when works 

 like this will yield a profit, instead of entailing a lods on their 

 projectors.. 



The only Entomological Catalogues published by the Trustees of 

 the British Museum during the past year are two of Lepidoptera 

 Heterocera by Mr. Walker. 



The Zoologist. 



The 'Zoologist' for 1863 contains a large amount of Entomological 

 information, and some valuable descriptive papers ; amongst the latter 

 a translation of " Some Remarks on the Species of the Genus Nep- 

 ticula," by H. von Heinemann ; twenty-eight species are described, 

 and I notice under each a description of the larva and mention of the 

 food-plant: these furnish satisfactory assurance of the paper being 

 written by an Entomologist thoroughly in earnest, and a master of his 

 subject, — one who indeed has studied a book in which no errors are 

 to be found. The above paper is immediately followed by one de- 

 scriptive of sixteen species of Lithosia, by M. Guenee, worked out in 

 the same admirable manner : such papers cannot fail to be duly 

 estimated by all Entomologists.^ 



Hymenopterists are much indebted to Mr. May for his valuable 

 translations from the Dutch of M. Snellen van Vollenhoven's papers 

 "Life-History of Sawflies :" the histories given are those of Emphy- 

 tus tibialis, Nematus viminalis, Allantus Scrophulariae, and Cimbex 

 Ameringe : the larva is described as well as the perfect insect ; in 

 fact each paper is in truth what it purports to be — the life-history of a 

 sawfly. 



Amongst the captures of rarities, we have another instance to add 

 to those previously recorded of the occurrence of the beautiful Calo- 

 soma sycophanta ; it was found, recently killed, at the foot of a hill, 

 one of the Dartmoor range : the captor, Mr. Reading, of Plymouth, 

 observes : — " Some Coleopterists do not consider this a British spe- 

 cies, an opinion I concurred in until I met with it." I am inclined to 

 think that many of the species placed by Mr. Crotch iu the list of 

 "reputed British species," in his 'Catalogue,' recently published, 

 would be advanced to the British ranks, if discovered under similar 

 circumstances by that author. Among the "reputed" species I notice 

 Anomala Donovani : if this is not a British species, of what country 

 is it a native ? On many minor points Coleopterists will hold different 



