pkesident's addkess. 269 



The Sturgeon, captured off the coast, has been seen three or 

 four times in the fishmonger's shops during the past year. 



!N"o new Yertebrata have been discovered ; no MoUusca, new . 

 to our district, have been announced. 



With regard to Insects, I have been very obligingly furnished 

 with the following report by our chief Entomologist, Mr. William 

 Maling, under date March 28, 1879. 



''As far as my observations go the year 1878 was by no means 

 a good one for collecting insects. 



" Owing to the cold, wet spring, many species of Lepidoptera, 

 usually to be found in abundance, were last year exceedingly 

 scarce ; and although July was a very fine month, the Agrotes 

 {Noctua:) and other coast Moths I found in most cases represented 

 only by individual specimens. Micro -lepidoptera {Toririces and 

 Vinem), many species of which may be met with in swarms dur- 

 ing most seasons, were conspicuous by their absence. 



''The only captures of note worth mentioning, I find by my 

 notes, are : one Afamea fibrosa, taken in August by Mr. Hender- 

 son, in Jesmond Dene ; one Leucania littoralis, taken by myself 

 at Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, in July : this and the former insect 

 are very rare species in the north. I was also fortunate to meet 

 with three or four larvae of Notodonta dromedarius and one of 

 Acronycta leporina, both feeding on birch in August, in Chopwell 

 Woods. I also found a few larva3 of Anisopteryx mBCulana feed- 

 ing on White Thorn in Chopwell Woods ; this, I think, is new 

 to the district. 



"Of insects destructive to vegetation 1 might mention the 

 larvae of the Crane Fly or Daddy-long-legs {Tipula oleracea) as 

 having been very injurious to the crops of oats and barley in the 

 spring, on several farms near this town, and also in several other 

 parts of Northumberland ; in several cases the land had to bo 

 ploughed up and re-sown ; the larva is of a dirty-whitish colour, 

 and feeds at the root of small plants and grasses : the perfect in- 

 sect may be seen on any fine evening during autumn flying over 

 the surface of the ground depositing her eggs one by one. 



"This fly was very numerous last autumn; but, although 1 

 have dug in several places this spring where last year I found 



