Yorkshire, in which county it was first noted in 1841; thence it extends into Lancashire, Cumberland, and Durham, but is local and scarce in the latter county. Southwards it is found in the counties of Cheshire (locally not uncommon on moors and mosses), Derby, Nottingham, Stafford, Shropshire, Warwick, Gloucester (rarely); more locally in Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, and Kent (once at West Wickham). In 1896 it occurred in numbers in the New Forest, Hants, and I believe that a solitary specimen was secured in Hayling Island in 1901. In Scotland it occurs up to Inverness and Aberdeen; and Kane states that in Ireland it is doubtfully recorded from Londonderry, but that he has seen lovely forms of the species from Killarney. It also occurs in Co. Wicklow. The range abroad extends to Siberia, Amurland, and Mongolia.

The Dingy Shears (Dyschorista fissipuncta).

In its typical form this species (Plate 4, Fig. 4) has the fore wings pale greyish brown, but occasionally they assume a reddish tinge. Var. corticea, Esp., is of the latter colour, and has the black edges of the claviform extended to beyond the middle of the wing. In another form the fore wings are dark grey brown (Fig. 5), leading up to var. nigrescens, Tutt, with blackish fore wings and the hind wings darker than usual. Besides the forms just mentioned, I have a bred specimen from Canterbury in which the fore wings are of a pale whity brown, with very faint markings, and the hind wings are almost white; it is rather below the average size, and possibly is an abnormal aberration. This species is the ypsilon of Borkhausen, and the upsilon of other authors.

The caterpillar is brown, sometimes inclining to reddish marked with black above, and the under surface is paler; there are three pale lines along the back, and one low down along each side; head, pale brown freckled with darker brown. It feeds in April and May on willows, chiefly the narrow-leaved kind, and also, although less frequently perhaps, on poplar. These caterpillars may often be found in the daytime under loose bark of the willow, or lurking among grass roots or débris around the trunk. (Fig. 1 on Plate 3 is from a coloured drawing by Mr. A. Sich.)

The moth is out from late June through July. It is a constant visitor to the sugar patch, and will put in an appearance even when other species refuse to be drawn thereto. It appears to be pretty well distributed over England, and in the southern half at least is not uncommon, wherever there are old-established willows. In the northern counties it seems to be much less frequent, but it is recorded as common or plentiful in one or two Cheshire localities, and is said to be taken by all the Newcastle

collectors. In Scotland it has been noted in only a few localities. Abroad, the range extends to Amurland.

Mesogona acetosellæ, Fabricius.—Mr. R. Adkin has a specimen of this Central and South European species. It was taken at sugar on the evening of October 26th, 1895, by Mr. T. Salvage, in his garden at Arlington, Sussex (Entomologist, xxviii. p. 316).

The Double Kidney (Plastenis retusa).

This olive-brown species, shown on Plate 4, Fig. 7, has a reddish-tinged form—ab. gracilis, Haw.—but otherwise there is little to be noted in the way of variation. The caterpillar is pale green with three whitish lines on the back, and a narrower and more irregular whitish line low down along the sides; head, yellowish green, or dark brown. Sometimes the body has a yellowish tinge at each end. It feeds on the foliage of sallow and willow, from April to June, drawing together the terminal leaves of a shoot as a retreat.

The moth is on the wing in July and August, and is more frequently attracted at night to the aphis secretion known as "honeydew" than to the sugar patch, although it does not ignore the latter altogether, and occasionally enters the illuminated moth trap. Barrett states that he has found it at the flowers of figwort (Scrophularia aquatica). Apparently a local species, but found more or less frequently in most of the southern and eastern counties of England, and through the Midlands to Cheshire, Lancashire, and Yorkshire; it is, however, rarely seen in the three last-named counties.

The range abroad extends to Amurland and Japan.

The Olive (Plastenis subtusa).

This moth is shown on Plate 4, Fig. 6. It is somewhat similar in general appearance to the last mentioned, but the

colour of the fore wings is greyer; the cross lines are not parallel, and the outer margins of these wings are less irregular. The caterpillar is greenish, with black dots, and white lines along the back and sides; the head and plate on the first ring of the body black. It feeds, on poplar and aspen, in April and May. By day these caterpillars may be found spun up between two leaves or in a folded leaf. The moth is out in July and August, but is rarely noticed in the daytime, although at night, when it becomes active, it may be obtained, sometimes not altogether uncommonly, at honeydew, or in much fewer numbers at sugar or light. The best way to obtain the species is to search for the caterpillars, which are not at all difficult to rear. Most of them, however, prefer the higher foliage of well-grown aspen or poplar, where they may be seen but not readily secured; but I have generally found as many as I wanted within reach.

The species seems to have a wide distribution throughout England, and Scotland up to Moray, its occurrence in any locality depending on the presence of the poplar or aspen. The range abroad extends to Eastern Siberia.

The Centre-barred Sallow (Cirrhœdia (Atethmia) xerampelina).

The typical form of this pretty species has the fore wings yellow, with a purplish-red central band. The band, which fills up the space between the first and second lines, is rarely carried through to the front margins of the wing, but usually is only fragmentary above the reniform stigma, which forms part of it; it also varies in the intensity of the purple tint. In most British specimens the band varies as indicated above, but the general colour of the fore wings is orange-yellow (Plate 4, Fig. 8)—ab. centrago, Haw.—the hind marginal band agreeing in colour with that of the central band. Or the fore wings may assume the colour of Fig. 9, var. unicolor, Staud., but this form is rare in Britain, although it is known to occur in the Isle of Man, and has been recorded from Ripon, Skipworth, and York, also from Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Notts, Lincoln, and Gloucestershire. The caterpillar is brownish, inclining to greyish above and to greenish grey beneath, freckled with darker brown; of the three whitish lines along the back, the central one is widest, but is only really distinct on the middle part of each ring; the lines are margined with black, the edging of the central one irregular, but of the others more complete; the spiracles are whitish, and the area above them is dark grey-brown enclosing paler spaces on each