142 
THE ENTOMOLOGIST’S WEEKLY INTELLIGENCER. 
NATURAL HISTORY OF THE 
TINE IN A. 
Depressaria Nervosa. 
The egg of this insect is probably laid 
in the spring by the hybernated female, 
and no doubt a number are simul- 
taneously deposited on the food-plant, 
(E nan the crocata. The larvae feed in 
the heads of this plant, drawing the 
flowers and leaves together by silken 
threads, and as from twenty to thirty 
larvae generally occur on one plant, its 
vegetative powers are much interfered 
with, and the head becomes drawn up 
and contorted. The feeding larvae may 
be found from the end of May to the 
beginning of July, and I have frequently 
noticed that a single head of the plant 
will contain larvae of very different ages, 
some being quite young, whilst others 
are nearly full fed. In England, I be- 
lieve, it has ouly been observed on 
CEnanthe crocata (the notice that it had 
occurred on Cicula virosa is probably a 
botanical error), but Professor Zeller 
finds it on CEnanthe Phellandrium ( Phel - 
landrium aquaticum), and near Leipzic 
it has occurred on Sium lali/olium ; on 
all these plants, however, the habit of 
the insect seems identical; the larva 
when full fed bores into the stem of the 
plant and weaves a transverse piece of 
web right across the stem, just above the 
opening it has made ; the larva then 
stations itself above this silken floor- 
ing, and there, inside the stem, under- 
goes its change to the pupa state : a 
number of pupae are frequently found 
thus located, one above another, in the 
main stem of the plant. In three or 
four weeks the perfect insect makes its 
appearance. 
II. T. Stainton. 
A BORDER WARFARE. 
To the Editor of the ‘ Intelligencer.' 
Sir, — Not having duly received the 
‘ Intelligencer’ for the last month, it was 
only the other day that I was apprised 
of some allusions made towards me by a 
Mr. Hodgkinson, of Preston. 
In preparing my list of tbe Lepidoptera 
of this county, I distinctly stated that 
it was a list of insects which had come 
under my observation, and although I 
neither bred nor captured the bulk of 
them, some were captured by others 
whose veracity I had never any reason to 
dispute; such were my remarks previous 
to the “area” mania, and which must 
convince your readers of the misrepresen- 
tations of Mr. Hodgkinson. 
It may interest those who wish to 
come to definite results upon the “ distri- 
bution” subject to know that, finding 
some difficulty in obtaining good speci- 
mens of Argynnis Aglaia, which were 
only to be obtained about twelve miles 
distant from Carlisle, I determined upou 
another plan, which was attended with 
success: having obtained a number of 
worn specimens I carefully boxed them, 
and gave them their liberty upon a 
suitable locality nearer home ; and, 
although the food-plant was scarce, I 
captured upon the same ground, for two 
or three seasons, larger and finer speci- 
mens some twelve or fourteen days earlier 
than the insect occurs at Ormthwaite. 
With similar results I have practised 
with Meliltca Artemis and some of the 
Noctum. 
I possess a full series of Pamphila 
Linea ; P. Sylvanus is very common 
here. Chlocphora Prasinana is abundant, 
