NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS. 259 



in the middle, consisting of thirty-three joints, more closely compacted 

 nearer the extremities. Legs with divided trochanters, tibiae furnished 

 with a long hook, tarsi five-jointed, the last joint furnished with two 

 hooks. Ovipositor length of abdomen, consisting of three pieces, the 

 centre a smooth, hard, sharp-pointed borer, the outer sheath of two 

 pieces softer and hairy. The whole insect was hairy. The position 

 of the ovipositor in an incomplete female in one of the cells struck me 

 as curious, being curled over and laid along the back of the ab- 

 domen. — Rose Haig Thomas ; The White House, Basildon, Reading, 

 July 3rd, 1890. 



Larva of Dicranura vinula and its Weapon of Offence. — On July 

 2nd I found three full-fed larvae of JDicranura vinula, on a willow tree, 

 which I took home with me. The next day, on my looking into their 

 cage to see if their leaves wanted changing, one of the larvae suddenly 

 squirted up a quantity of poisonous tiuid with great force into my right 

 eye. In tne most intense agony I rushed off to the doctor, who pro- 

 nounced the eye-bail to be in a dangerous condition, and said that the 

 poison must have been of a most virulent nature. For some hours I 

 could not see at all with the injured eye, and it was some days before 

 it had recovered. At the time of this extraordinary occurrence my 

 eye was quite two feet away from the caterpillar, tlius showing the 

 great force it must have used. I have bred hundreds of these larvae 

 before, and examined them closely in all their stages, but have never 

 noticed this peculiarity before ; though, of course, many kinds of larvae 

 slowly emit a greenish lluid when irritated. Can any of your readers 

 tell me of similar instances of this extraordinary propelling force in 

 any larvae ? Could the larva have shot from its mouth, or from the 

 red filaments in its two tails ? It certainly made a wonderfully good 

 shot ! — H. W. Shepheard-Walwyn ; Glensyde, Bidborough, near Tun- 

 bridge Wells. 



[The fiuid which caused the unpleasant effect was formic acid, and 

 it was ejected by the larva from an orifice placed on the under side of 

 tiie segment immediately following the head. When at rest, the head 

 itself IS withdrawn into the first thoracic segment, and the opening 

 referred to is then in position, and ready to discharge the irritating 

 tiuid. Possibly, however, the larva only uses this means of defence 

 under exceptional circumstances. — Ed.] 



The late Mr. J. A. Cooper's Sale. — Another collection, that of 

 the late Mr. J. A. Cooper, of Leytonstone, has recently been broken 

 up at (Stevens's, and considering the time of the year, and the fact that 

 it contained few rarities or varieties, the total of i^l46 12s. 6d. realised 

 may be considered satisfactory, notwithstanding the inclusion in that 

 figure of two cabinets. Practically the only variety of any note was 

 the fine var. of Folyommatus phlceas figured in the ' Entomologist ' for 

 last June, which made £2 10s. Twenty-three specimens of Deilephila 

 (jalii, all bred by Mr. Cooper from larvae found by himself at Aldeburgh, 

 (Suffolk, in the well known galii year, fetched an average of about 4/6 

 each. A specimen of Sphinx pinastri, well authenticated (but with no 

 history in tne catalogue), realised 82/6. Thirteen Nola centonalisy^eni 

 for £2 7s. ; and a lot of Arctias, including a confluent var. of A, villica 

 (once belonging to the writer), 28/-. The cheapest lots in the sale 



