﻿238 [March, 



LytfmHa purpuraria, near York. — I have two old specimens of this rare insect, 

 taken in Stockton Forest, four miles from here, by Henry Baines. These are set 

 with short household pins ; were taken at the same place, and by the same captor 

 as my old Acidalia rubricata, which species has since been taken in the same 

 locality. — T. H. Allis, Osbaldwick, near York, February, 1870. 



Note on Oidaria reticulata. — I wish to call attention to a distinct character of 

 the male, I allude to the large round yellow spot on the under wings, which shows 

 both above and below. I have not seen any notice of this in English works. — Id. 



Depraved appetite in Lepidopterous larvce. —I have made a note of two cases of 

 depraved appetite in Lepidopterous larvse during the past season. 



The first is that of a larva of Agrotis saucia, which, though furnished with 

 green food, ate a portion of the dead and dried body of a larva of Agrotis ripce ; 

 and the other is that of a larva of Eupithecia expallidata, which I watched devouring 

 one of those claret — or mulberry — coloured aphides, that infest the Solidago 

 virgaurea. — J. Hellins, Exeter, 12th January, 1870. 



The sexes of Coniopteryx psociformis. — With reference to the supposition that 

 C. psociformis and C. aleyrodiformis may be only the sexes of one species, as noted 

 in my Monograph of British Planipennia (Tr. Ent. Soc. 1868, p. 193), I may remark 

 that Mr. B. Cooke recently submitted to me two examples of psociformis which 

 appeared to be decidedly $ and 9 • They were quite similar in general form, both 

 with small hind-wings ; but that which I consider the ? was smaller than the 

 other, and with the abdomen swollen and elongated, apparently full of eggs. — 

 Eobert McLachlan, Lewisham, February, 1870. 



British Lepidopterists as viewed by a German. — Some years since, when I was in 

 London, I called on a dealer in High Holborn, and, looking through his stores, saw, 

 among others, a Castnia that suited me. It was the, as yet, rare papilionaris, 

 Walker. He demanded sixpence for the specimen, which was somewhat worn, yet 

 quite fit for the Cabinet. I could not do better than buy it at so cheap a price. 

 When I had looked over the exotics and picked out something more, he shewed 

 some European species. There I found a very beautiful Luperina Haworthii. More 

 from curiosity than from a desire to buy, I asked the price. " One pound " was the 

 answer. I replied that, considering the low price of the exotics, he perhaps meant 

 "one penny." "Oh! no, no, Sir. One pound: that's a British insect." He had 

 scarcely spoken, when in came a British Collector who admired this " fine species," 

 and without more to do, because this was a British-born specimen, bought it for 

 one pound. As a German insect, this Noctua would only have cost a few pence, 

 but as a pure-blooded Briton it was worth one pound. " sancta simplicitas ! " 

 murmured I, and went my way. — Petek, Maassen, of Elberfeld [in the " Stettiner 

 Entomologische Zeitung," 1870, p. 58, note]. 



[The insect noticed is Gozlena Haworthii of our lists. We would not for a 

 moment accuse Herr Maassen of having invented a ridiculous statement for the 

 purpose of throwing up in stronger relief the self- isolating tendencies of many of 



