NOTES ON COLLECTING. 108 
Anyerona prunaria was not uncommon at dusk; an odd Myclophila 
cribrum was found at rest on a thistle, and single Crambus pinellus and 
Asthena luteata were beaten, but nothing else of note. I had in con- 
nection with this day a curious experience. A specimen of Phorodesma 
bajularia, faded to a pale salmon colour, which I boxed for ova, was 
accidentally put in the ammonia over night, and in the morning, I 
found the colour restored to a brilliant green. As the effect of the 
fumes went off it quickly faded again, but was immediately restored 
upon holding it over the ammonia bottle, and again fading in a few 
seconds when removed. The effect was quite as rapid as that produced 
by ammonia upon red litmus paper. I have always noticed that the 
colour of this species is quite uninjured by ammonia, but I have never 
before heard of a case of its being restored. Oxsnorr: Two other 
very successful evenings, spent at Oxshott, on each occasion only 
having from 6 p.m. to 9.25 p.m. between arrival and departure. On 
the first occasion (June 27th), I spent half the time amongst the pines 
and heather, getting a fine lot of female Bupalus piniaria, plenty of 
Macaria liturata, five Eupithecia indiyata, two Acidalia subsericeata, a 
single Dioryctria abietella, and plenty of Pempelia palumbella. Then 
working through a small copse, and into a grassy glade through 
clump of birch trees, quite a different lot of species occurred. Here 
Lomaspilis marginata simply swarmed, but I noticed no decent vars. 
A fine Fucosmia undulata was the best capture, and besides this a 
couple of Melanthia albicillata, three Platypteryx falcula, three 
Eupisteria heparata and a finely coloured Mrastria fuscula were beaten. 
Amonest the B. piniaria taken is a very curious specimen. It is 
coloured as a female, with the exception of one small patch of male 
colouring, but the antenne are neither simple as in the female, nor 
pectinated as in the male, but about half-way between. The proportion 
of females here of this species is very curious. You can get any 
number in an hour or so, while my experience has always been in the 
New Forest, that you have to beat for an afternoon to get one or two, 
although males are plentiful enough. My second visit was exactly a 
calendar month later; B. piniarta and M. litwrata were still in evidence, 
and Plebeius aeyon was dotted about at rest on the heather. I did not 
work the pines much, but after boxing a few Scoparia dubitalis, made 
straight for my copse and birches again, where I got another lL’. wndu- 
lata, nine very fine pee: v lacertula, three each P. falcula, HE phyra 
penchdaric, FE, punctaria and Crambus eles, and in a corner among 
some alders, a nice lot of Mupisteria heparata. Calligenia miniata 
occurred here as at Chattenden—it has certainly been a “ footman ”’ 
year—and in the copse a nice specimen of Rivula sericealis—surely 
rather a strange locality. While waiting for my train, | found 
Pachycnenia hippocastanaria and Lycophotia strigula (porphyrea) 
common over the heather (where I had also noticed Mndotricha 
flammealis very abundantly before dark) and regretted that the train 
turned up sharp to time. Brrcuwortn: My last afternoon excursion 
was made two days later (July 29th) to Betchworth for Pamphila 
conma. They were very common, but how difficult to get at! Never 
settline but on the bare sun-dried hillside, at the steepest part, it took 
me two or three hours of the hottest work I have known to eet four 
specimens. This year I mean to tackle them with the aid of spiked 
shoes, which would greatly assist, as many a specimen was lost, by a 
