160 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



in travelling most of them had become loose, and had lost their waxen 

 appendages; but a few still remained on the stems of their food-plant. 

 In connection with this subject, Mr. G. H. Verrall alluded to a Dipterous 

 parasite of Icerya from Adelaide — Lestophonus iceryce, Williston — which 

 had been bred from Icerya Purchasi, Mask., last February. Mr. M'Lachlan 

 and Lord Walsingham continued the discussion. 



Mr. K. Adkin exhibited a long and interesting series of Triphcena 

 comes (orbona), from various parts of the South of England, Yorkshire, 

 Forres, the Isle of Man, the Isle of Lewis, and the North of Ireland. 



Mr. G. F. Harapson exhibited a series of varieties of Plotheia frontalis , 

 Walk., which was the only species in the genus, and confined to Ceylon. 

 He said that the varied forms of this species had been described under 

 twenty-one different names by Walker, Felder, and Moore. 



Mr. F. Merrifield showed a number of specimens of Selenia illustraria, 

 of three different stocks, proving that the spring brood of this species, 

 which passed the winter in the pupal stage, was, like the summer pupa, 

 materially affected in colouring by the temperature to which the pupa had 

 been exposed in its later stages. He thought this fact, coupled with similar 

 results ascertained with respect to the single-brooded Ennomos autumnaria, 

 indicated that the operating cause was one of wide general application, and 

 that valuable results might be looked for if entomologists would turn their 

 attention to the subject. Capt. Elwes said that in his experience in many 

 parts of the Palaearctic region, in Japan, in the Taunus Mountains on the 

 north-eastern part of the Mediterranean, in the Canary Islands, and else- 

 where, where there was a combination of heat and moisture, all the commoner 

 species of Lepidoptera occurring in this country attained a larger size and 

 a greater brilliancy of colouring than in colder and drier regions ; and he 

 referred to such species, amongst others, as Pieris brassicce and Argynnis 

 paphia. The discussion was continued by Mr. Jacoby, Mr. Fenn, and 

 others. 



Mr. W. H. B. Fletcher exhibited a long series of Zygcena lonicera from 

 York, and Zygcena filipendulce from Shoreham, Sussex; also a series of 

 hybrids obtained by crossing these two species. He stated that the eggs 

 obtained from these hybrids were all infertile. Lord Walsingham said 

 this latter fact was extremely interesting. 



Mr. F. W. Frohawk exhibited a living specimen of an ichneumon 

 which had just emerged from a chrysalis of Papilio taunus. 



Mr. C. J. Gahan exhibited a number of species belonging to the genera 

 Lema and Dlabrotica, and read a paper on them, entitled " On mimetic 

 resemblances between species of the Coleopterous genera Lema and 

 Dlabrotica." Lord Walsingham, Mr. Jacoby, Colonel Swinhoe, and 

 Mr. Champion took part in the discussion which ensued. — H. Goss and 

 W. W. Fowleii, Hon. Secretaries, 



