94 



The Naturalist. 



near Settle might probably be able to solve the difficulty. Mr. Dale 

 suggests it is a Tabanus or Asilus, or less likely (Estrus or Sericomyia. Is 

 any British insect known which will in all respects answer this descrip- 

 tion '{ It was evidently an insoluble problem to the naturalists of the 

 last generation, and Mr. Haliday suggested to Mr. Dale that he should 

 go over to Ingleborough and try to take the insect. As Mr. Dale resided 

 in Dorsetshire, this would have been a long journey. I trust, however, 

 some Yorkshire naturalist may take the hint. — E. N. Bloomfield, 

 Guestling Rectory, near Hastings, Dec. 15th, 1882. 



Habits of Psylliodes hyoscyami. — Some years ago, whilst on a visit to a 

 friend, I was capturing this beetle for several days. I found it most 

 readily on the young plants of Hyoscyamus niger ; its presence is betrayed 

 by the habit of eating small round holes in the leaves. Like its congeners 

 it gives a jump when alarmed, and if found will be lying on its back, 

 exhibiting only, the deep black underside, and looking as much as 

 anj'^thing like a small bit of coal on the soil. But it is not worth while 

 for the collector to hunt after one which has thus given him the slip ; he 

 has only to remove to a short distance and the beetle will soon return to 

 the plant. I could not learn anything about the larva ; the proprietor of 

 the grounds assured me that the holes were made by the perfect insect ; 

 they are similar to those made by Orchestes fagi in the leaves of the beech, 

 but proportionally larger. — Benj. Cooke, 63, Windsor-road, Southport, 

 Nov. 6th, 1882. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL NOTES.- Whilst collecting with Mr. S. L. 

 Mosley in the rough field adjoining Lepton Great Wood, near here, on 

 the 12th of June last, we found many of the flowers of Ranunculus 

 hulhosus closed up with silken threads, and tenanted each by a single 

 Tortrix larva ; but although the flowers seemed all to be closed up in pretty 

 much the same way, there were evidently two species of larvse of very 

 distinct form and pattern. In July they produced Sciaphila pascuana 

 (pasivana) and Sphaleroptera ictericana freely and in about equal numbers, 

 and one well-marked specimen of Sciaphila octomaculana. The two former 

 species seem to be previously unrecorded for the county. Towards the end 

 of October I found a lot of old wool which had lain in the warehouse (in 

 the centre of the town) for some months, swarming with Tinese, and 

 comprised of six species. The most numerous was Tinea biseliella ; then 

 ^cophora pseudo-spretclla, then Tinea tapetzella, T. pallescentella, T. 

 pellionellay and Endrosis fenedrella. Of these the pseudo-spretella were 

 all dead, but the others living ; and, indeed, on looking at the wool again 

 at the end of November, biseliella seemed to be almost as plentiful as ever. 

 On finding so many moths, I felt sure the parasites could not be far ofl", and 

 had scarcely sooner looked for, than found a dozen or more ichneumons 

 amongst them, mostly dead, but two lively enough. These, Mr. Bridg- 

 man has written me, are Hemiteles bicolorinus (which is new to the county 

 list) and a Braconid he did not know. Some Trichoptera I captured in 



