7 
most uniform series of the insect. Of the thirteen insects 11 are quite 
of the typical coloration, whilst one shows a tendency to approach the 
ah. rufa, Tutt. Apamea basilinea .— The four specimens sent are very 
fairly typical. Ematurya atomaria. —These specimens were captured 
on Thurstaton Common, by the river Dee, in May, 1896. They are 
rather smaller than our southern form, and more nearly approach in 
size, and in their dark fuscous coloration, those from the northern 
moors. Hypsipetes ruberata. —Captured at Flaybruck Hill, near 
Bidston, in May, 1896. These are an interesting series, somewhat 
smaller than the Wisbech specimens. Most of the individuals show 
the transverse markings fairly well, whilst only two examples exhibit 
the pale central band so conspicuous in the two allied species — tri- 
fasciata and furcata (xorclidata). 
Feb. 16th, 1897 .—Heredity notes relating to T/eniocampa stabilis, 
Demas coryli, and Ennomos quercinaria.—M r. Bacot exhibited two 
broods of Taeniocampa stabilis Avith their $ parents. No. 1, of 19 
specimens, contained 9 $ s (47-37 %) and 10 $ s (52-63 %). No. 2 con¬ 
tained 10 specimens, the sexes being equally divided. All the speci¬ 
mens were much smaller than their 9 parents (hardly larger than 
T. pulverulenta) . This was probably due to their having been largely 
fed on sycamore (a food to which they were not very partial), and 
perhaps also to their having been occasionally allowed to run very 
short of food. Neither brood seemed to closely follow the 9 parents, 
either in tone of ground colour or shading. Considerable variability 
existed in both broods as to the distance separating the orbicular and 
reniform stigmata. Mr. Bacot also exhibited 22 specimens of Demas 
coryli, bred during August, 1896, from a 9 taken in Epping Forest, 
by Mr. A. F. Bayne, last April. These contained 12 J s (or 54-5 %) 
and 10 $• s (or 45-5 %). He said : “ The 9 parent I carelessly lost; 
but, so far as my memory serves me, she was a strongly marked form, 
the dark and light areas of the fore-wings being sharply contrasted. A 
tendency in the same direction is noticeable in many of her offspring. 
The 9 s seem to vary much more than do the 3 s, both as regards 
size, and also as to the depth of colour and sharpness of outline of the 
dark band of the fore-wings.” Mr. Bacot also exhibited 23 specimens 
of Ennomos quercinaria, containing 13 As and 10 ? s, bred in 1896, 
from a 3 and 9 of his ’95 brood. The parents of both broods were 
also exhibited. A comparison with the far larger brood of 106 speci¬ 
mens, reared in 1895, showed that the proportion of $ s to 9 s was 
almost exactly reversed ; the figures for the ’95 brood were 56-6 % 9 s 
and 43-4 % 3 s ; while for the ’96 brood they were 43-5 % 9 s and 
56-5% 3 . The moths bred during 1896 exhibited but slight variation, 
the ground-colour being of almost exactly the same tone in all the 
specimens, only 1 9 being noticeably lighter in this respect. They 
also showed far greater stability as regards the strength of the dark 
suffusion in the fore-wings. In every case, with possibly one excep¬ 
tion (the 9 previously alluded to), the ’96 brood was as dark as, or darker 
than, their parents, and also than their grandparents, if the sexes were 
taken separately and compared with the grandparent of the same 
sex. At least one 9 and many of the males were darker than either 
3 parent or grandparents. In the ’95 brood 23 % had hardly a 
trace of suffusion ; 33-66 % were suffused, but to a less extent 
