NOTES FROM CHESHIRE AND NORTH WALES. 389 



rumicis and H. pisi fell freely into my umbrella as well, but no 

 Nemeophila russula ! Two years ago I beat the latter into the 

 umbrella by the half-dozen. The day was dull and threatening, 

 but a fine specimen of the dragon-fly, Lihellula scotica, fell into 

 the umbrella from the sweet gale (bog-myrtle). The following is 

 a description: — Expanse of wings, 2 in.; body, from thorax, 1 in., 

 and slender. Head yellow; eyes brown. Thorax and body 

 yellowish ochreous brown, black underneath. Legs black. A 

 dark, almost black, triangular frontal mark on thorax ; sides of 

 thorax light yellow, with black boundaries and centres. Wings 

 colourless, except the base, which is suffused with yellowish 

 ochreous colour ; a black, rectangular costal mark near each tip ; 

 nervures delicately pencilled in black. The only lepidopterous 

 insects I could beat up on the Moss were C. testata, and a few 

 faded Cramhus margaritellus. 



In early September and late August I found larvae of Orgyia 

 antiqua a pest in the Grosvenor Park, Chester. Some of the 

 bushes of the holly-leaved barberry (Mahonia aquifolia, American 

 flora) had scores and hundreds of them, together with cocoons 

 and pupae. I bred a large number of the moths, and it was 

 amusing to see out-of-door males assembling in the daytime on 

 the breeding box when the females appeared. 



On Sept. 7th, a fine but unusually pale larva of A. alni was 

 brought to me for identification by Mr. J. Lyon Denson, a Chester 

 fellow-naturalist. It had been taken off a brick wall, in the 

 suburbs, by a boy. In spite of diligent search, no more were to 

 be had. On Sept. 8th Mr. Denson and I worked the gas-lamps 

 with a ladder. We took several Eugonia alniaria (tiliaria), C. 

 truncata (russata), with YSbYS. pei'fuscata and immanata, Crocallis 

 elingiiaria, a fine Geometra papilionaria, Noctua rubi, Neuronia 

 popularis, Triphana ianthina, Hi/droecia micacea, and other com- 

 mon moths. We had now a few days of hot weather, and the 

 butterflies, as if determined to share them, appeared in fair 

 numbers ; Pieris hrassicce, Epinephele tithonus (very late), with 

 small coppers and common blues. I saw nothing of Vanessa 

 urticcB, V. io, or V. atalanta, although I found larvae of the first 

 two common enough on nettles by the river- side, in July. 



On Oct. 3rd I went to Delamere Forest, chiefly to get rid of a 

 "cold," possibly influenza. Experience showed me that the 

 odour from the firs is most beneficial in such cases. Making 

 every allowance for "faith-healing," if there be such a thing, I 

 was better next day, and thoroughly well the day after. Beating 

 Scotch firs showed larvae of B. piniaria to be in force, while those 

 of L. camelina, full-fed, still lingered on birch. But the ferns 

 and undergrowth were rapidly turning yellow, showing up, in 

 startling contrast, the greens of the mosses and the sombre 

 shades of the Scotch firs. We had, generally speaking, a cold, 

 wet October, with high gales ; and I packed away my setting- 



