224 ENTOMOLOGICAL NOTES FOR THE YEAR 1861. 
such also was the case in the year 1853. The same super- 
abundance of wasps, the same scarcity of other insects. (See 
Mr. Bold’s notes for that year.) 
Lepidoptera.—Butterflies it was no use looking after. The 
Orange-tip I saw but once. The Tortoise-shell, one on Good 
Friday, and one since, one red Admiral, no large Whites, and but 
few small ones; the Meadow Browns, where were they? did any- 
body see them? The Blues held their ground for a few days in 
exceedingly limited numbers, and then they disappeared. But 
I must not omit mentioning, in order to keep up the spirits of 
our younger brethren of the net and pin, the occurrence of three 
of our rarer Sphingide in.the district, A. atropos, the ‘ Death’s 
Head,’ was captured at Wylam, S. convolvuli, in Newcastle, and 
D., galii at South Shields. Moths were few, and in many instances 
of smaller size than usual, this was the case also in the south, 
probably the effects of the cold and damp upon the larve. 
Coleoptera.—Land Beetles of all kinds were scarce, and Water 
Beetles it was particularly remarked, were in greatly diminished 
numbers, some of common occurrence were rare, others, local, have 
not been found. The common Cock-chafer I only saw three 
times all the summer, and the Coast-chafer (Anomala Frischit) 
though sought for particularly in its usual haunts, (the links 
beyond South Shields) where it was abundant last year, has not 
been seen. 
Hymenoptera.—Bombi few, but their parasites the Apathi, one 
kind particularly, (A. campestris) was common in the autumn, 
this is another problem which wants elucidation; other Bees rare, 
exceedingly so. Ichneumons and Saw-flies, the same. 
Diptera —From the Daddy-long-legs to the smallest black 
Dung fly in greatly restricted quantities. 
Such has been the state of the insect world during the season 
in this part of the country, and though want of success may have 
damped the ardour of some of the young beginners, I hope in no 
instance that the fire has been quite extinguished, but trust that 
the sight of their empty boxes, and blank spaces, when the 
spring returns, will give them a fresh impetus to pursue this 
very interesting branch of natural history—Hntomology. 
