﻿1870.1 217 



thinking that they also took kindly to one another — in the style of Hamlet's 

 nncle, "a little more than kin, and less than kind ;" — for, although I never caught 

 one in the act of cannibalism, somehow they became fewer and fewer in number, 

 until, by August 12th, there remained but one full-grown larva to be described. 



The newly-hatched larva is quite translucent and glossy, in colour rose-pink, 

 rather paler towards the tail ; the head blackish ; the skin furnished with some 

 bristles. At the end of a week it had lost much of its translucent look, the 

 colour had become more of a claret, the bristles had disappeared. At the end of 

 another week or ten days, much of the purplish-red had vanished, and the colour 

 had become a dark brown. On August 12th, the full-grown larva was thus des- 

 cribed : — Length, when stretched out in walking, about ^-inch ; but its general 

 attitude is to " hunch up " its middle segments into a close loop, keeping the front 

 and hind segments close to the surface on which it is resting ; and for this position 

 the figure seems specially adapted, the head and three following segments being 

 much smaller than the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th, all four of which are tumid, and the 

 hinder segments being also somewhat smaller ; there are but two pairs of ventral 

 legs, or 12 legs in all. The colour of the back is dark purplish or crimson-brown, 

 very glossy, making it hard to distinguish the obscure markings on it ; through 

 the back runs a slightly paler central stripe ; the sub-dorsal line is faintly seen as 

 a paler brown line, edged with blackish below ; the sides and belly are paler, and 

 more ochreous in tint ; taken altogether, the larva has a general appearance 

 of a dingy, dark, chocolate colour. 



August 15 th, my larva became a pupa, naked, because I had unfortunately 

 disturbed it whilst setting about a slight cocoon : its length was about 5-inch, its 

 shape blunt at the head, tapering gradually towards the tail, which was rounded, 

 not acute, cylindrical, with polished surface ; in colour it was all over alike, of a 

 pale green, faintly tinged with brown. — J. Hellins, Exeter, December 2nd, 1869. 



Early breeding of Aplecta occulta. — Last autumn I had eggs of this moth given 

 me by my friend Mr. G. B. Longstaff. from a 9 taken at Forres. These hatched 

 in due time, and fed up on Plantago lanceolata, growing, however, very irregularly. 

 By the 12th December, some four had gone under the moss to change. 



On the 11th January, I was surprised to find a fine $ specimen of the perfect 

 insect in my breeding cage. The larvae and pupae had been kept during the whole 

 time in a room, which had a fire during the day-time. 



Many pupae of Noctuce, such as piniperda, &c, which usually produce the perfect 

 insect much earlier than occulta, were in the same box, and are yet unchanged. 

 This early breeding of occulta seems to be worth recording. — Geo. Norman, Ben 

 Ehydding, 12ih January, 1870. 



More abnormal appearances of Lepidoptera. — A male Selenia illustraria emerged 

 on New Tear's day. Like the one recorded in last month's Magagine (p. 190) it 

 was the spring — not the summer — form. On this day (January 14th) a fine $ 

 Eupithecia helveticata has made its appearance. Am I a privileged individual, as 

 regards these abnormal appearances which I have recorded, or have others experi- 

 enced the same ? I would repeat that, in all the cases, the pupae have been kept 

 in a cold room, at the top of the house, facing the north. — J. Greene, Apsley 

 Road, Eedland, Bristol, lAth January, 1870. 



