THE YOUNG NATUBALIST. 



133 



in which Dr. Sharp, Mr. Stainton, Mr. M'Lachlan, and others took part. 

 Mr. Meyrick stated that, as far as the Pyralidina were concerned, Australia 

 could riot be regarded as a separate region, for a large number were not 

 endemic, but appeared to have been introduced from the Malay Archipelago. 

 The method of this immigration seemed doubtful. Mr. Meyrick was of 

 opinion that the insects flew very long distances, and effected a settlement 

 through their food-plants being widely distributed and common. He instanced 

 the undoubted immigration of certain Australian species into New Zealand, a 

 distance of 1200 miles. Mr. Stainton adduced the instance of Margarodes 

 unionalis, which is a South-European insect, feeding on the olive, yet is 

 occasionally found in Britain. 



Mr. Meyrick also made some observations on the distribution of the insect 

 fauna in the various regions of Australia ; he said that it appeared to be more 

 or less different in certain defined portions of the continent, which might be 

 roughly regarded as oases in the midst of desert districts : all his observations, 

 however, had tended to upset Mr. Wallace's theory that Eastern and Western 

 Australia were originally separated, as the gradations in the insect fauna from 

 east to west were quite gradual; in Western Australia the Tineina were the 

 only group well represented by peculiar endemic forms. 



Mr. Pascoe read a paper " On the genus Byrsops" a genus of Curculionidae. 



The President announced that Lord Walsingham's collection of Lepidoptera 

 and larva?, recently presented to the nation, would be exhibited in the Hall 

 at ;the Natural History Museum, South Kensington, untill the end of 

 June.— W. W. Fowler, Hon. Sec. 



HAGGERSTON ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



May 26^. — Mr. Huckett, Vice-President, in the chair. Mr. Pearson 

 exhibited S. radiella and L. argiolus ; Mr. Hanes, a very fine series 

 of C. verbasci ; Mr. Eussell, a long and variable series of L. alexls ; 

 Mr. Sampson, a specimen of large green grasshopper; Mr. May, larva? 

 of B. quercus and C. caja ; Mr. Lusby, A. betularia, S. carpini, and 

 others ; Mr. Clark, a very fine series of A. mendica. Some of the mem- 

 bers had visited the New Eorest and Croydon, and found species very 

 scarce. Mr. Russell opened the discussion on the life history of L. 

 alexis, with a description of the larva and both sexes of the imago. This 

 species seems to be generally distributed on the Continent, where it is called by 

 the name of Icarus, and also occurs plentifully in Northern and Western Asia. 

 The flight is not very rapid. Some specimens rather larger than the ordinary 

 type have been taken at Einchley and Box Hill. Messrs. Huckett and 

 Clark had each taken a hermophindite of this species. Mr. Pearson 



