THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



immigration both would disappear from this country. A few records 

 of Vanessa antiopa have been made from Kent, Sussex, Essex, Hamp- 

 shire, and the Isle of Wight. These have probably crossed from 

 France, which is rather unusual. One is mentioned as having the 

 border " straw yellow," another with " the border not quite so white." 

 One " with the usual pale border," another " the border is lighter — 

 than that of the usual Continental specimens." It would have been 

 interesting to know the colour of the border in all cases. There have 

 been no captures of Anosia phxippus in 1888, but a specimen taken in 

 1887 in Sussex was recorded last year. It therefore appeared for three 

 consecutive years, 1885, 1886, and 1887. It was most plentiful in the 

 first year. Have subsequent captures been the descendants of these, 

 or has each specimen crossed the Atlantic ? If they are the 

 descendants of the 1885 butterflies, they must have found some other 

 food than Asclepias, Perhaps the most interesting butterfly record 

 for the year, is the capture by a son of Mr. T. H. Briggs, of a specimen 

 of Aporia cratagi at Ramsgate. The species therefore has not entirely 

 left us. No record has been made of the occurrence of P. acis or avion 

 nor argiades. I doubt the two former are quite lost, and that the 

 specimens taken of the latter have been escapes or immigrants, 

 though certainly the circumstances appeared in favour of the species 

 being a true native. 



Among the Sphingida, Deilephila galii, of course, stands out 

 pre-eminently. It has occurred both as imago and larva all 

 round the coast, and in many places inland. Perhaps the most 

 interesting thing connected with it, was the discovery of twenty-two 

 larvae on the Rose Willow herb (Epilobium angustifolium) at Risley 

 Moss, near Warrington. I am not aware that it has been found on 

 Willow herb previously. From the number of records made, and 

 from private communications, I would estimate the number of 

 specimens obtained either in the perfect state, or in the larval form, 

 as exceeding one thousand. Other rare Sphinges have been met with. 

 Charocampa nerii was taken on a railway at Poplar on 20th September. 

 C. cehrio was met with at Reading in Berkshire. Deilephila livornica, 

 three captures ; one in Cornwall, one in Sussex, and the third in the 

 North of Ireland. Sphinx convolvuli has not been very rare, though not 

 so plentiful as in 1887. Sphinx pinastri was bred from a larva found 

 near Wimbledon in August or September, 1887. The editors of the 

 Entomologists 1 Monthly Magazine, in commenting on the circumstance 

 say : — " There seems reason to believe that specimens recorded from 

 near Ipswich may be considered British (in the broad sense). Others 



