PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 
59 
these curious fungi to our Irish flora. I exhibit a drawing (plate 1) of the three speci¬ 
mens which he was fortunate enough to discover ; and, in giving the history of the 
middle and most conspicuous specimen, I give that of the others also. The following 
is from Mr. Hogan’s notes “ The larva, bearing the Sphseria, was taken on the 
10th of March, 1853, while digging for pupae at the roots of an oak tree, in Mount 
Merrion, the demesne of the flight Honourable Sydney Herbert, and the resi¬ 
dence of E. Vernon, Esq.; at this time they were quite young, the tallest not 
being more than a quarter of an inch in height. On examining the larva, on the 
12th of April, which, acting on the advice of Professor Harvey, had been kept 
moist in a vessel filled with clay and moss, and covered with a piece of glass, I 
found fully one dozen fresh sprouts on it, pure white, and one of them about one 
line in height, shaped like a dagger ; from that time the Sphseria continued to 
grow, some more and some less, rapidly for several months, always retaining the 
white point at the end of each stem, till, at length, the cold of winter seemed to 
deaden, though it did not destroy their vitality; meantime, none of the shoots 
showed any sign of fructification. As early spring opened, the Sphseria again 
threw out fresh shoots ; some of the latter forming branches from the old ones, 
whose extremities had withered away at this stage of their growth. However, the 
space in which they were confined being manifestly too small, and seeming to 
cramp their existence, I could not resist the temptation (though, from the extreme 
delicacy of the plants, I knew it to be attended with great risk) of transferring the 
whole into a larger vessel, where they might enjoy more space, more light, and more 
air; but this experiment proved fatal, from what special cause I know not, and 
the entire nursery died away by slow degrees.” Though it is a pity that none of these 
Sphseria fructified, so as to enable one to determine, with certainty, their species, 
yet it would appear that these Irish Sphserias are not either entomorrhiza or 
militaris, which are the only two that have been found in England. I forwarded to 
the Kev. Mr. Berkeley the Sphseria, No. 3, and he most kindly forwarded me, by 
return of post, the following:— u There is no doubt that the Sphseria is quite dif¬ 
ferent from S. entomorrhiza. I know of no insect Sphseria like it. Of others, it most 
resembles S. filiformis.” 
It is to be hoped that Irish entomologists meeting with any fresh examples of 
these Sphseria will preserve them, and, if practicable, rear them until they fructify, 
as by this means alone will it be possible to determine, with accuracy, the species. 
I hope I may be excused for the imperfect manner in which I have accomplished 
my task ; but, in introducing to your attention the recently mentioned Irish ex¬ 
amples, I thought it better to give a sketch, however slight, of what 'is known to 
naturalists concerning them. 
The President remarked on the advantages resulting to science from the careful 
collection of scattered portions of information on a subject, hitherto so little studied, 
as that of Mr. Wright’s paper ; and expressed a hope that more satisfactory results 
might yet arise relative to the Irish Sphaeria. 
Dr. Carte exhibited a fine specimen of the Egg of the Ivory Gull (Larus ebur- 
neus), which had been taken, by Captain M‘Clintock, in the arctic regions. He 
observed the gull sitting on her nest, which was composed of dry sea-wrack, and, on 
a near approach to her, she flew away, leaving the single egg exhibited in the nest. 
Only one other specimen of this very rare egg seems to have been preserved 
before. 
DESCRIPTIONS OF INSECTS FIGURED, AND REFERENCES TO PLATES ILLUSTRATING 
THE NOTES ON KERRY INSECTS. BY A. H. HALIDAY, ESQ., M.A. 
N.B.—The following symbols are used in common with all the figures, where 
such are requisite:— 
X, body; C, head; Cc, epistoma; O, eye; Oo, ocellus; B, antenna; E, 
mouth; L/, labrum; M', mandible; M, maxilla; Mm, mala; L, labium; LI, 
ligula"; P, Palpus ; P', maxillary ; P", labial; Q, thorax; K, sternum ; A, wing ; 
S, leg ; S', fore ; S", middle ; S'", hind; Sc, coxa ; St, trochanter; F, femur ; 
T, tibia ; Tc, spur; D, tarsus ; Du, unguis; Dy, onychium ; Dy', empodium; 
