iJOTES, CAt'TUilES, ETC. 75 



having found a female of the first-named, we were able thereby to procure 

 as many males as we wanted. On one night, amid drizzling rain, we took 

 on two lamp-posts close to the town N. popularis (15), C. affinis, D. diffinis, 

 N.plecta, and E. fuscantaria. Among the larvas which we found at Sid- 

 mouth were SmeriniJius populi, Sphinx ligustrl, Dicranura vinula (ex- 

 tremely abundant, but for the most part ichneunioned), Brephos parthenias, 

 and G. libatrix. The sallows yielded a plentiful supply of L. marginata, 

 0. bidentata, and C. pusarin. Saturnia carpini and Bombyx rubi were very 

 prominent upon the brambles on the heaths, and while collecting a number 

 of these we came across a few Stilbia anomala, which were, however, sadly 

 battered. On our return home (Sept. 8th), we tried sugaring till the end of 

 the month, but insects seemed scarce, the only exceptions being M. maura, 

 P. meticulosa, X. polyodon, M. brassiccB, T.pronuba, and C. nupta. By light 

 we captured N. xanthographa, G. trapezina, E. luclpara (1), H. micacea 

 (3), N. popularis, E. angidarla, E. tiiiaria (on nearly every lamp), T. sub- 

 tusa (one in a spider's web). Larvae of A. betularia, 0. bidentata, M. persi- 

 caricB, M. oleracea, H. chenopodii, E. lucipara, H. triplasia, 8. menthastri, 

 S. lubricipeda, and A. aceris were unusually abundant. We also found one 

 S. ocellatus (on an apple tree), and one D. bifida (crawling down a poplar 

 trunk).— C. M. Wells; Hurstfield, Tlie Avenue, Gipsy Hill, S.E. 



Melanippe fldctuata vab. neapolisata. Mill. — In the account of 

 the meeting (November 97th) of the South London Entomological and 

 Natural History Society (Entom. "21), Mr. South is reported to have 

 expressed a doubt as to the occurrence of Melanippe fluctuata, L., var. 

 neapolisata, Milliere, in Britain. In 1886, I sent a number of our dark- 

 banded forms of M. fluctuata to Professor C. Blachier, of Geneva, and, as 

 he thought them interesting, he forwarded a few to his friend the late 

 Monsieur Pierre Milliere, who at once identified them as exactly the same 

 as his var. neapolisata, which he discovered a few years ago in and near 

 Naples, and figured in his ' Iconographe,' vol. iii. pi. 131. In the 

 ' Annales de la Societe Entomologique de France,' 1887, Mons. P. Milliere 

 describes, and on pi. v. fig. 7 figures, a fine female example of our Aber- 

 deenshire var. neapolisata, which was captured by me near Pitcaple in 1886 ; 

 he at the same time expresses great surprise that a South European form 

 should have been taken in such abundance in North Britain. As a number 

 of specimens have now been found intermediate between the variety and 

 type, several of my entomological friends have expressed a doubt whether 

 the variety is worthy of a distinctive name ; but this does not affect the 

 fact that Milliere 's variety neapolisata is not only widely distributed, but 

 common in many parts of Great Britain, especially to^vards the North of 

 Scotland. — Wm. Reid ; Pitcaple, N.B., January 5, 1891. 



Sugar. — Sugar in this locality, as in others this year, has proved dis- 

 appointing ; the only good thing that appeared during the summer was 

 ^.octua stigmatica, of which 1 took nine. From two females I obtained 

 ova, and have now nearly fifty larvse hybernating ; these fed well on chick- 

 weed and plantain till the frost came. Though I laid on sugar some weeks 

 nightly, I obtained nothing again of moment till the 3rd week in Septem- 

 ber ; then, as the result of six nights' work, I succeeded in getting a short 

 but very fine series of Xanthia aurago, graduating in colour from the 

 deepest orange to pale yellow. The same week 1 obtained one Xylina 

 semibrunnea and one Epunda lutulenta ; then, with the exceptiou of oue 



