Viewing page 23 of 189

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

41
30th Oct 1942.

Received from Rev. K. M. Dunlop, Athy, a stung larva of betularia surrounded by dirty white Apanteles cocoons, & some naked larvae, not pupae, lying scattered around but whether these latter are Apanteles or belong to a hyper parasite I can't say.  It seems unlikely that any of the latter will produce flies, but we must wait & see.   K.M.D. says he took the betularia larva at same place as he got the stung strataria larvae some years ago, but the cocoons indicate that these are not the same species as the strataria parasite, whose cocoons were a rich golden-brown colour & whose flies were to have been described by late D.S. Wilkinson as Ap. stratariae.  The specimens of the latter are now in the hands of G.F. Nixon, Imp. Inst. Ent., London, who is to finish Wilkinson's work.  

[At my request some of these Apanteles & cocoons returned by Nixon in Nov. 1942! A.W.S.]


42.

Nov. 1942.

Mainly dry & calm, with occasional frosty nights, much cloud, but little rain;  glass went up very high & stayed there for a long time, the weather gradually getting uniform & settling down to a spell of quite dry rather chilly weather with thick cloud cover that shut out the sun's heat entirely.  In spite of this type of weather wasps continued very active (Vespa vulgaris) & ☿☿ were seen at ivy-blossom on every possible occasion up till & including 22nd;  none were seen, however, in Glenasmole on 25th, but this is not a locality in which I have seen late wasps & so the observation signifies nothing.  About the middle of the month Hugh D. Pack-Beresford, now living at "The Tansey" on Howth peninsula, sent me 3♂︎♂︎ V. vulgaris & said they & workers were flying very freely there - about which time there was considerable sun during some days.  Petasites fragrans well out - ? a couple of weeks - at Temple Bridge on 22/11/42!  Thrush singing & some thousands of small "finches" in field & scrub at bus stop at 2 P.M. at Bohernabreena on 25th, but light so bad that it was impossible to recognize what they were, though many were Chaffinches.

Transcription Notes:
Some corrections and another review needed. 2. Reviewed & edited.