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Suffolk Natural History, Vol. 19
reported to him at Sycamore Farm, Swilland on 6th May, at Elmsett on 24th June, at Hadleigh on 2nd July, at Ipswich on 15th September, at Felixstowe on 29th September and at Monks Eleigh on 8th October. All three of these hawk moths were also widely reported in other parts of the country. On 25th August I found larvae of another migrant moth, Heliothis peltigera D. & S. bordered straw, on Walberswick beach feeding on sticky groundsel. An imago of this species came to my M. V. light on 19th September and on 26th September a specimen of Helicovera armigera Hübn. scarce bordered straw also came to my garden light trap. This is the third time I have had H. armigera at Walberswick. It is found in all five continents but is only a casual visitor to Britain. The larvae feed on many wild and cultivated plants including tomatoes, oranges, melons and cereals and are sometimes very destructive to crops. In the USA they are known as 'cotton boll worms'. In this country they are sometimes imported with tomatoes or oranges. Other migrant moths seen were Nomophila noctuella D. & S. rush veneer and Udea ferrugalis Hübn. rusty dot, both fairly numerous at Walberswick and elsewhere and also recorded by Mr. Watchman at Monks Eleigh. Finally, butterfly records included several observations of Colias croceus Geoff. clouded yellow, one by Mr. Eley at Nowton. Vanessa atalanta Linn, red admiral were around in good numbers everywhere with a fair sprinkling of Cynthiacardui Linn, painted lady reported by Mr. Eley, Mr. S. Pietrowski and others, and Polygonia c-album Linn, comma. Both Inachis io Linn, peacock and Aglais urticae Linn, small tortoiseshell were quite plentiful everywhere. Mr. Mendel of Ipswich Museum had reports of sightings of Nymphalispolychloros Linn, large tortoiseshell by Miss E. Mortimer at Earl Stonham on 30th July and by Dr. C. Grey-Wilson at Hitcham on Ist August. This species was reasonably plentiful in East Suffolk woods until 1954, when it suddenly became scarce everywhere in the country. Whether the reported sightings since are the result of immigration or the remnants of old colonies is a matter of conjecture. It is thought that the disappearance of this fine insect from all its old habitats may be due to climatic changes. H. E . Chipperfield, F . R . E . S . , Walberswick, Suffolk.
More white-berried spindle! Following my report on this unusual variety (see Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 18, 320), Dr. G. D . Heathcote wrote to say that he too came across spindle (Euonymus europaeus) with white berries in December 1982 while looking for eggs of 'blackfly' (Aphis fabae). It was growing on rough ground near Herringswell in West Suffolk. Professor M. J. Way of Imperial College, London, told Dr. Heathcote that he noticed this abnormal form for the first time in 1982, at Puriton in Somerset, but that he did not know if it bred true or was caused by the particular conditions in 1982. E . M. Hyde
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