57 
II. 
ON BKEEDING LEPIDOPTEEA IN CONFINEMENT, 
Bv F. D. Wheeler. 
Read 29th of July, 1873. 
I MAY premise that about two-thirds of this paper consists of 
extracts from my journals, and notes of my own experience in 
breeding ; of the remaining third, almost the whole is from infor- 
mation furnished in letters from Mr. W. II. Harwood, of 
Colchester, with one or two additions from those of other friends 
and correspondents. 
To the best of my knowledge, no published treatise gives any 
clear or detailed account of that which forms the first and not the 
least difficult stage of this branch of Entomology, and which is 
almost exclusively the subject of the present paper ; — I mean the 
inducing moths to pair. Knaggs’ “ Lepidopterists’ Guide” briefly 
touches upon it, but enters into no discussion on the subject j and 
I recollect very weU, that five years ago, when I first began to try 
my hand at breeding, my acquaintance with the matter was limited 
to a vague notion that you put a male and female together in a box, 
and then But here, unfortunately, my ideas came to an abrupt 
termination, so I filled up the blank by inserting, “ and then, why 
you got the eggs, and they all lived happily ever after, that is as 
long as they were wanted to Hve.” Accordingly, as there is 
nothing like trying, I at once set to work. I got my box, first of 
all, nine inches square ; then I got my pupae, and, thanks to the 
kindness of a friend, I was able to experiment on Endromis 
versicolor (the Kentish Glory)— rather a high flight for a begin- 
ning. I put the pupae in the box, and the whole in what seemed 
to my inexperience a suitable place— viz., on the mantel-piece. 
The result may be anticipated. In January the moths came out, 
showed not the slightest symptoms of pairing, knocked themselves 
to pieces, laid a few unfertile eggs— and died. This was discouraging 
