52 



THE BRITISH 



NATURALIST. 



[March 



veloped, while in the Orkney specimens, the margin was in all respects similar to the 

 type form. Mr. Lewcock also exhibited two pairs of Nesites tardyi from Dublin. 

 Referring to this species, he said that in the male, the antennae were inserted near 

 the apex of the rostrum, while the female had the antennae inserted nearer the base. 

 The apex of the rostrum also was thickened in the male, and the reverse in the female. 

 Messrs. Cripps, Burrows, and Southy also exhibited Coleoptera. — In Odonata. Mr. 

 Simes exhibited (on hehalf of Mr. Wattson, of Clapton) a number of living larvae 

 and pupae of Libellulidce, ^schnida and Agrionida. Mr. Robson then read his paper 

 on the genus Hepiatus of which the following is an abstract : — The female of this 

 genus always deposited their ova whilst flying over the herbage. The eggs were un- 

 usually small for the size of the parent, white when extruded but quickly changing 

 to black, whether impregnated or not. They were free from any adhesive matter, 

 and soon reached the bottom of the herbage, and the larva when hatched made its 

 way into the earth where it fed on underground roots and stems. The larvae were 

 all white iu colour, some certainly lived more than one year before pupation. The 

 pupae were long, light brown in colour, and enclosed in a long silken cocoon, in which 

 the active pupse could move very quickly up and down, by means of raised knobs on 

 the rings of the abdomen. The greatest interest attached to the perfect insects, which 

 were easily recognisable by their long narrow wings, long slender abdomen, and 

 extremely short antennae. The manner in which the sexes attracted each other was 

 curious and interesting. Humnli male flew back and forwards in an exposed place, 

 with a pendulum like motion, the female flying to him by sight. Mr. Robson suggested 

 that the sexes had at cne time been similar in colour and markings like others of the 

 genus, and that the necessity for the ? to see the ^ led to the selection of the 

 lightest coloured and largest specimens, until the present form was evolved. He 

 pointed out that in Northern latitudes, where summer days where longer, that the 

 process of evolution had been much slower, and that we had the intermediate stage 

 in var. Hethlan.lica, of our Northern islands. Rectus i 's had a similar oscillating 

 flight, but instead of flying in an exposed place, sought the shelter of some fern or 

 bush, diffusing as they flew, an odour like ripe pine apple, which attracted the female. 

 In the other three species the action was reversed. The ? resting on a strong stem, 

 vibrated her wings continuously, diffusing thereby a faint odour as above which at- 

 tracted the <? 's. The j 's flew wildly and erratically about in search of the ? and 

 so soon as they came within the range of the perfume, they changed their flight for a 

 slower one, until they found the ? . He dwelt at some length on the problem that if 

 hectus males, lost their scent-producing power, and the females had to fly to them 

 by sight, they would probably become larger and more silvery until a species like 

 humiili would be evolved. He also pointed out that even in the hind wings, hectus 

 often had silvery spots. The paper closed with a reference to some unsolved prob- 

 lems connected with the genus. 



Errata. 



P. 34, line 12, after "containing" add "three and two pupae respectively. Mr. 

 Tutt, two cabinet drawers containing." 



LANCASHIRE AND CHESHIRE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



Monday, Feb. 8th. — The president Mr. S. J. Capper, F.L.S., F.E.S. in the chair 

 Messrs. Henry Champ and W. H. Holt were elected members. Mr. VV. E. Sharp 

 read a paper entitled " Some remarks on the Hydradephaga of the District," 

 illustrated with specimens and large coloured diagrams. The author referred to the 

 general classification of the Celeoptera, and said that in the genus Dytiscus the whole 

 physiology was to adapt them to less resistance in swimming. He then gave a re- 

 sume of the records of local species, of which 74 species had been recorded out of 



