Entomological Society. 7267 



Proceedings of Societies. 



Entomological Society. 



October 1, I860.— H. T. Stainton, Esq., V.P., in the chair. 



The following donations were announced, and thanks ordered to be presented 

 to the donors : — ' The Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England,' 

 vol. xxi. Part 1 ; presented by the Society. ' Proceedings of the Royal Society,' 

 vol. X. No. 40; by the Society. ' Memoires de rAcademie Imperiiile des Sciences, 

 Belles-Lettres et Arts de Lyon,' Classe des Sciences, Tomes viii and ix. ; Classe des 

 Lettres, Tome vii,; by the Academy. 'Annales des Sciences Physiques et Nalurelles 

 d'Agriculture et d'Industrie de Lyon,' Tomes ii. and iii. ; by the Society. 'Exotic 

 Butterflies,' Part 36 ; by W. W. Saunders, Esq. ' The Journal of the Society of Aits' 

 for September ; by the Society. ' The Zoologist ' for September ; by the Editor. 



Election of a Member. 



M. DeyroUe, of Rue Rivoli, Paris, was balloted for, and elected a member of the 

 Society. 



Exhibitions. 



Mr. Janson exhibited specimens of Epitrix Atropse, Maerkel, Foudras (Crepi- 

 dodera Alropae, Allard), taken on Atropa Belladonna, near Arundel, by Mr. Wollaston 

 and the Rev. Hamlet Clark, on the 8lh ultimo. He remarked that several examples 

 of this species, new to the British list, had been found a few days previously in the 

 same locality by Mr. John Gray, and he had this morning heard from Mr. S. Stevens 

 that specimens, reported at the time as the E. pubescens of Panzer, were taken by Mr. 

 H. Francis near Reigate, on the 22ud of June last. He also remarked that this 

 insect, considered by the older entomologists as a mere variety of E. pubescens, and 

 beautifully figuved as such as far back as 1803, by Sturm in the ' Entomologische 

 Hefte,' was first signalised as a distinct species by Herr Maerkel, and that the late 

 M. Foudras of Lyons had described it in his extraordinary work * Altisides de France,' 

 and pointed out the differences between it and its near allies Epiirix pubescens, Panz. 

 and E. intermedia, Foudras ; and further that the genus Epitrix is not accepted by 

 by M. Allard, in his ' Essai Monographique sur les Galeruciies Anisopodes, Latr., ou 

 Description des Altises d'Europe et des bords de la mer Mediterranee,' of which the 

 first portion has recently appeared in the ' Annales de la Societe Entoniologique de 

 France,' who places the E. pubescens and E. Atropae at the end of the genus Crepidodera, 

 remarking with respect to the laiier that " elle n'est peutetre q'uue varieie de la pubes- 

 cens ;" but the form of the aedeagus, described by M. Foudras, is so dissimilar in the 

 two insects, and, setting aside size and colour, the difference in the form and sculpture 

 of the prothorax, although in creatures thus minute scarcely perceptible to the unas- 

 sisted eye, is so apparent under a lens, that he entertained no doubt whatever as to the 

 propriety of considering them good and distinct species. 



Mr. Janson also laid before the meeting a box, handed to him for ihat purpose by 

 Mr. Baly, containing examples of closely allied species of Donacia, Chrysomela and 

 Paropsis : by the side of each specimen, mounted on card, were placed the generative 

 organs extracted from it. He called particular attention to these organs as exhibiting 

 striking differences in species so closely resembling each other as to be readily taken 



