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NOTES ON REARING LEPIDOPTERA, 1952. BUTTERFLIES. W H I T E A D M I R A L (Limenitis Camilla, L . ) , In July and August, 1951, a n u m b e r of ova and young larvae were f o u n d on leaves of honeysuckle in a wood near Colchester. T h e s e were b r o u g h t home a n d kept u n d e r cover. I n September the young larvae started their period of hibernation in portions of rolled u p leaves. One only of these appeared in the spring ; this pupated on 28th May a n d the butterfly emerged on 18th June. ESSEX S K I P P E R (Thymelicus lineola, Ocho.). I n July, 1 9 5 1 , a few females had been enclosed over grass, and it was seen that ova were being deposited in the sheaths of the grass stems. In January the grass stems were examined and a large n u m b e r of ova were found. [One of the differences between this species and the Small Skipper ( T . sylvestris, L.) is that the former winters as an egg, and the latter as a tiny larva inside a cocoon which it spins inside the sheath of grass.] T h e very small yellow larvae with black heads appeared at the beginning of April and produced butterflies in July.
MOTHS. B L O O D - V E I N (Timandra amata, L.). A female deposited many ova in August, 1951. T h e young larvae fed o n knot grass in the a u t u m n ; they hibernated on the dead leaves and stems. In March, 1952, they were transferred to dock leaves, u p o n which they fed quite well, producing moths at the end of May. L I L A C BEAUTY (Hygrochroa syringaria, L.). A batch of brightred, oval-shaped ova were f o u n d on a leaf of honeysuckle in a wood near Colchester in July, 1951. T h e y proved to be Lilac Beauty. T h e larvae, in their looped resting position and with the curious projection on their backs, are extremely difficult to distinguish in all their stages. Hibernation took place w h e n they were quite small. In M a y the larvae pupated. A very thin cocoon was s p u n hanging f r o m a twig or leaf. T h e discarded larval skin was pushed through the bottom of the cocoon, where it remained protruding ; it does not remain, shrivelled up, in the cocoon as is usual in most species. T h e p u p a is short and d u m p y and the whole (pupa, cocoon and discarded skin) looks exactly like a dead leaf. T h e moths emerged in June ; several pairings were obtained and a large n u m b e r of ova were laid. T h e ova at first were pale cream, b u t turned red in the course of a day or two. S.
BEAUFOY.