8776 



Insects, 



Sphinx Convolvuli at Hackney. — A male specimen of this species was taken by a 

 neighbour of mine on the morning of the 5lh of September, fluttering just outside his 

 house. It has suffered but little by falling into unentomological hands, and will, 

 as soon as removed from the selting-board, be added to my collection, it having been 

 presented to me. — Thomas Huchett ; 49, Warburton Road, Hackney, September 7. 



Note on Limacodes Testudo. — On the 5th of July I was fortunate enough to beat 

 into my net a pair of L. Testudo in cop. Not having a female in my collection, T 

 hesitated for some time about sacrificing her, an immaculate specimen, for the sake of 

 her eggs. At last I determined on this course, and placed her in a paper cage con- 

 taining a bottle with some sprigs of oak. I opened the cage in about a week, and 

 found its occupant dead and spoiled ; but the walls of the dwelling were plentifully 

 sprinkled with what at first appeared to me spots of some dried exudation from her 

 body, but which I soon perceived, from their number and regularity, to be eggs. None 

 were laid on the gauze covering of the cage, and only a few on the oak leaves. The 

 egg is quite unlike any other Lepidopterous egg that I have ever seen. It is slightly 

 oval in form ; its lower surface is flat on the paper, the upper surface slightly convex. 

 Each egg is quite 1 -twentieth of an inch across, which seems very large for the size 

 of the insect. Its colour is pale yellow, with an opaline appearance. I thought my 

 fortune was made when I saw how liberal my Testudo had been, for there were cer- 

 tainly more than two hundred eggs ; and I was very chary of them, hoping to have a 

 goodly row of the imago for exchange. I therefore only sent batches to Mr. Double- 

 day and a friend at Brighton. This parsimony I now regret, as, among a number of 

 skilful breeders, there would have been a better chance of a successful issue in some 

 quarter. But to proceed. My eggs were hatched (scarcely any failed) in nine days : 

 The young larvae were very stout, whitish and hairy, with small black heads ; but they 

 would eat nothing, though they had the choice of oak, hazel, sallow, &c, both tender 

 and tough ; and they all died. My Brighton friend, a very successful breeder of 

 Lepidoptera, placed the eggs on a young growing oak, enclosed in a muslin bag, and 

 when he opened it found all the eggs hatched and the larvae dead, having scarcely 

 eaten anything. Mr. Doubleday also placed the eggs on a young oak, and tells me 

 that they all hatched, but that, with the exception of five, they would not feed, and of 

 these only two now survive, which grow very slowly. The only time I ever took the 

 larva of L. Testudo was on the 6th of October, 1860 : it was three parts fed, but gra- 

 dually withered up. My Brighton friend above-mentioned writes: — " A few Septem- 

 bers ago I found one more than half-grown crawling up an oak bole. It formed a 

 compact, egg-shaped, brown cocoon, but never emerged from it. Before that I once 

 (in August) beat a young one about 1 ..eighth of an inch long ; but it soon died." I 

 should think the larva must have been beaten occasionally by many of your readers, 

 who might be able to fill up some gaps in the history of the insect ; but I fancy that 

 the peculiarity of the egg has never been noticed hitherto. I enclose a leaf nibbled 

 by the young larvae, sent me by Mr. Donbleday. — E. Horton ; Lower Wick, Worcester, 

 August 28, 1863. 



[My detailed description of the larva in a former number of the 'Zoologist' 

 (Zool. 6732) goes far to complete the history of this remarkable insect — E. Newman.'] 



Description of the Larva of Arctia mendica. — The eggs are laid in May, on the 

 leaves of Urtica dioica (stinging nettle), several species of Rumex (dock), and some 

 other herbaceous plants; the young larvae emerge in June, and at first are pale, 

 almost colourless, with the exception of a yellowish head and anal extremity, and a 



