442 BRITISH LEP1D0PTERA. 



not stir, and two or three minutes later the $ again vibrated his 

 wings (more rapidly than at first), and this lasted for about half- 

 a-minute ; this aroused the ? , who set free her companion, the latter 

 immediately taking flight. In captivity the imagines generally emerge 

 from 6 a.m. — 8 a.m. ; immediately their wings are dry, they settle down 

 and remain quite still until about 8 p.m., when the £ s begin to fly, 

 seeking the $ s, and pairing with them freely in the enclosure in which 

 they may be confined. Whilst paired, the insects- remain at rest, ap- 

 apparently sleeping during the period of copulation, some 22 — 23 

 hours. The couples arrange themselves vertically, the $ with its 

 head pointing downwards, as other observers have noticed in other 

 species. Several pairs were purposely disturbed, but the ? almost 

 immediately returned to the previous position, and it was con- 

 cluded that this was possibly necessary owing to the weight of 

 the abdomen of the $. Separation took place in the same manner 

 as described above for the first pair, the $ vibrating its wings, a 

 movement repeated three times before departure, the $ s remaining 

 quite still more than half-an-hour after the departure of the J 

 before taking flight for the purpose of egglaying (Lambillion). 

 Ransom observes that the ? s sometimes pair more than once. 

 Newman notes (Ent. Rec, xii., p. 350): "The Js are attracted 

 very readily by a newly-emerged ? , rarely before 1 a.m., but 

 between 1 a.m. and 1.45 a.m., they arrive very rapidly, and are 

 so keen in getting to the $ that they may be picked up with the 

 fingers." At rest during the day, they are not very conspicuous; 

 on July 7th, 1884, a very fine specimen was observed at rest on 

 the edge of a potato-leaf, and in this position it so exactly resembled 

 a dried and withered leaf that I was almost deceived, the hindwings 

 being hidden under the forewings, whilst the conspicuous ocellated 

 spots were not visible (Warner). The imagines are frequently taken at 

 light at Lincoln (Musham), and at Ahascragh, commonly (Dillon), 

 at the electric lights at High Wycombe (Peachell), and at Chester 

 (Arkle) ; they occur at electric light at Berne (Hiltbold), and three 

 examples were taken at electric light at Borshom by H.R.H. 

 Prince Nicolas Romanoff. Rothke records the imagines as 

 sometimes, but very rarely, visiting flowers of an evening, like the 

 Sphingids, resting by day on the stems or among the leaves of 

 trees (teste Bartel). Cross-pairing of a $ S. ocellata with a ? Mimas 

 tiliae has been recorded by Herfert, and hybrid tiliae $ x ocellata 

 2 have been bred (see antea, p. 391). Crosses of $ astylus x ? 

 ocellata are fruitful (loc. cit., p. 392), whilst those of ocellata $ X 

 populi $ are common (loc. cit.), on one occasion a $ was found 

 paired with a 2 A. populi in Princes Park, Liverpool, May 28th, i860. 

 The reciprocal cross is very rare (loc. cit., p. 395). 



Habitat. — The species appears not to be particular as to 

 its habitat ; in gardens in the London suburbs, where a newly- 

 emerged ? placed on a shrub in the early evening is almost sure 

 to be found with a partner in the morning ; in gardens and orchards 

 on fruit-trees in Kent, Hereford, the Burton -on -Trent district, 

 &c. ; by the sides of ditches on the marshes along the banks of the 

 Thames, on marshy land at Enniskillen, Sandwich, on Wicken 

 and the other Cambridgeshire fens, on the coast sandhills at 

 Instow, Deal, &c. ; on Strensall Common abundant, and on the open 



