108 BR- J- ENT. NAT. HIST., 7: 1994 



10 May 1994 



The President, Dr P. Waring announced the deaths of Dr Basil MacNulty and 

 Mr Gaston Prior. Both were former presidents of the society. 



Mr R. A. Jones showed a dwarf specimen of the common leaf-rolling weevil 

 Apoderus coryli (L.) taken by sweeping in Hoe Copse, Midhurst, West Sussex, 

 18. vi. 1978. The species is known to vary somewhat in size and is usually quoted as 

 being 5.9-8.0 mm long. At 5.3 mm the specimen fell well outside this range. 



He also showed a specimen of the seven-spot ladybird, Coccinella septempunctata 

 (L.), taken near Dade City, central Florida, USA, on 21 .iii.1994. This Eurasian species 

 was first released in the USA in 1956. Over the next 15 years it was introduced in 

 several Atlantic and mid-western states, but establishment was not confirmed at any 

 of the release sites. The first confirmed records of permanent establishment in 

 North America were in New Jersey and Quebec in 1973. By 1988 the beetle was 

 recorded from 39 states and it continues to spread westwards. 



Dr P. Waring showed a larva of the goat moth, Cossus cossus (L.), that he had 

 been rearing. It was unusually small and pale in colour, and may be parasitized. While 

 replacing the food material in the rearing box, Dr Waring had discovered a tipulid 

 larva in the caterpillar's feeding gallery in the apple. It had presumably been introduced 

 with soil placed in the bottom of the rearing box. 



Mr A. J. Halstead showed a live specimen of Trox scaber (L.) (Coleoptera: 

 Trogidae) collected in his garden at Knaphill, Surrey. E. B. Britton in the RESL 

 handbook on Scarabaeidae (1956), described T. scaber as occurring "in dry animal 

 remains, wood mould in oaks and elms, and birds' nests". L. Jessop in the 1986 

 revision of this work describes it as occurring "in birds' nests in hollow trees (mostly 

 owls' and other nests containing bones) and in detritus of animal origin". It also 

 occurs on the inside of the exhibitor's compost bin, where there are no nests or bones. 

 It seems likely that this beetle has much less specialized requirements than has been 

 suggested and it can probably breed in a wide range of decaying organic materials. 



Mr R. D. Hawkins showed a live specimen of the shield bug Eurygaster 

 testudinaria (Geoffroy) (Hemiptera: Scutelleridae) found 10. v. 94 on a roadside verge 

 at Horley, Surrey. The specimen had a purplish-red colour, unlike the brown colour 

 typically shown by adults in the autumn. 



The following persons have been elected as members: John Edmund Chainey, Simon 

 James Hayhow, Martin Cade, David John Poynton, Toby Howes, Jacqueline Shane, 

 Martin Evans, Derek Harry Howton, Beatrice Gillam and Jonathan Paul Guest. 



The scheduled speaker was replaced by Dr Jonathon Denton, who spoke on the 

 natterjack toad and its conservation. The natterjack toad is Britain's rarest amphibian 

 and it has gone from most of the inland sites where it was found earlier in the century. 

 Apart from one heathland site on the Surrey/Hampshire border, it is now confined 

 to coastal sites in East Anglia, north-west England and the Solway Firth. The habitats 

 in these various sites — heathland, mobile sand dunes and salt marsh — are seemingly 

 very different but a common feature is the availability of open ground with sparse 

 vegetation. Natterjacks have good long-distance vision and run after prey, unlike the 

 more sedentary common toad. 



During the mating season the males position themselves at the edge of pools and 

 make loud calls that can be heard a mile away at night. After pairing the females 

 lay 2-5000 eggs in warm shallow pools. The tadpole stage lasts 6-8 weeks. The small 

 toadlets remain near the pool and are diurnal for the first month after metamorphosis. 

 Later they become nocturnal and after 6-8 weeks are large enough to be able to make 

 burrows in the ground to avoid desiccation. 



