1960 for Aberrations

1960 FOR ABERRATIONS.

by ALASDAIR ASTON.

No very rare moths appeared at the end of 1959 but there wer several local species. For instance, Stowmarket light on August llth produced Nonagria typhae Thunb., N. geminipun and Notodonta dromedarius L., with Cerura furcula Moths were plentiful at Barton Broad, Norfolk, on August 15th, when blended light drew in 75 species. Among those that were noticed by Mr. Chipperfield, Mr. Thurlow and myself were Orthonama lignata Hübn., Procus literosa Haw., Tri jecta Hübn., Eustrotia uncula Clerck., Pelosia musc Arenostola fulva Hübn., Celaena leucostigma Hübn., Haw., Arenostola phragmitidis Hübn., Miltochrista m and Nonagria typhae Thunb. Before dusk a Bittern and a of Bearded Tits had been observed from a boat among the Broa reeds, whence was cut a single pupa of N. algae Esp. which produced a rufous imago before 9 p.m.

Micros reigned supreme until August 21st, when Stowmarket light attracted Amathes sexstrigata Haw., Horisme vita and GortynaflavagoSchiff., an autumnal touch. On the 22n came N. geminipuncta Haw., and a great improvement on 23rd with Drepana cultraria Fab., thefirstI had seen in S It was a female of the second brood.

On August 25th, I made a trip to Thelnetham Fen where, as the guest of Mr. Edmund Cooper, the writer, I was able to attrac many moths to the white walls of his house, using blended light. Both Sarrothripus revayana Scop. and Schrank trigalis Steph. were obtained" and a specimen of the Pyralid Loxostege sticticalis L. This last species I used to find on t but it now seems to spread to fens, such as Wicken where also I have caught it.

1960 opened with good news at the Congress of the South Eastern Union of Scientific Societies. Mr. Epps reported a view of Nymphalis polychloros L. at Sproughton on April 15th. fagella Fabr., rested on an oak trunk in Staverton Forest on 2 April, with Selenia bilunaria Esp. and Earophila badia at Bury on the 24th.

Further South, on the North Downs, hibernated Nymphalids lasted well, for Deerleap Wood provided Polygonia c-album on May 26th and Nymphalis io L. on May 29th. Gonep rhamni L. was still in evidence at Eashing, by Godalming, on Ju 4th and a bare eleven weeks later I observed thefirstautumn male in Suffolk at Bury on August 20th.

ABERRATIONS

413

The first of three good aberrations observed by me this year flewto DulwichlightonJune5th. It was a specimen of Xanthorhoe fluctuata L., ab. costovata, Haw., closely resembling that figured

by South. The second aberration was a Coenonympha pamphilus L., with a dark bar very much in evidence across the underside of the forewing. I netted it in Featherbed Lane, Addington, on August 4th.

The third aberration flew to blended light at Bury on August 7th, my first evening in Suffolk this summer. It was an a symmetrical Arctia caja L., with the right forewing bearing the usual reticulated pattern of cream. The left forewing, however, bore almost no trace of cream and was uniformly chocolate brown.

The hindwings showed sings of crippling and this suggested that the abnormality of colouring had been caused by a constricted tube.

On the same evening in my brother-in-law's garden, which backs onto the River Lark, blended light drew the following species : Perizoma flavofasciata Thunb., Eremobia ochroleuca Esp., Horisme vitalbata Hübn., Laspeyria flexula Schiff., Drepana hinaria Hufn., Pliragmatobia fuliginosa L., Acasis viretata Hübn., and 75 other species. The next evening was numerically better with 87 species, but the only notable was a male Zeuzera pyrina L. On August lOth at Bury, light produced Deilephila porcellus L., and a Polygonia c-album Was netted in the garden. Upon inspection its comma was found to be extended into a white D. The weather went wet on the 1 Ith, but I set off in a fine rain to beat the hedges neighbouring Bury, remembering the old bughunter's song :— " If you don't mind the rain You shall not beat in vain."

After an hour and a half's whacking at maple and barberry 1 had caught five specimens of Coenotephria berberata Schiff., probably in the exact place where Skepper discovered it just a hundred years ago. I also noted several Lyncometra ocellata L. At Bury light on 13th came Eupithecia linariata Fabr., and Ligdia adustata Schiff., and on the 17th Sarrothripus revayana Scop.

Our member Mr. Bernard Tickner invited me to West Stow on the 19th August and 64 species were observed on a roughish night. The locality was very good with nearby heath, coniferous woods, deciduous trees, meadows and reeds along the River Lark. A distinctly unusual capture was that of Arenostola fluxa Hübn., a species that has turned up on the coast and in the extreme west only. Also captured were a male Drepana cultraria Fabr.,

ABERRATIONS 414 and two D.falcataria L., several Pheosia tremula Clerck geminipuncta Haw., Cerepteryx graminis L., Cerura Notodonta dromedarius L. From August 2Ist, I collected at Stowmarket, where catches were unimpressive apart from one female Galleria mellonell on 21st, with 58 other species, the best night until 3Ist, when I collected on Mr. Peter Rudge's farm at Hepworth. Among a vast conclave of mainly agricultural moths were one or two aberrations of Amathes c-nigrum but the micros were more e In September Vanessa atalanta L., has been very prevalent second brood Celastrina argiolus L. persisted until August Back in London, a local inhabitant handed me a large Sphingid pupa found in his back-garden when it was a " rieh brown " Caterpilar. It reminds one of Deilephila elpenor L., but w keep me guessing tili next season, which one prays will be drier

THREE ADDITIONS TO THE SUFFOLK LEPIDOPTERA. b y ALASDAIR

ASTON.

Acrolepia assectella, Zell., the Leek Smudge (Heslop 2096 first noted in Britain from East Sussex during 1942, probably having been imported (Danreuther Ent. 79, 1946), and was next recorded in August, 1943, by G. C. Johnson who found larvae and pupae on leeks in the Bexhill District. Thirdly, in the same year, 1943, October brought material on leeks, onions, and garlic from Eastbourne (H. Stringer, B.M., Proc. R. Ent. Soc. Lond.

Ser. C9, No. 1). In 1945 it was known from Dover, Portsmouth