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NOTES-—ORIGINAL AND SELECTED.
(Lytta vesicatoria), seems worthy of special mention. This splendid species is
usually extremely rare in Britain, but in 1837 was found in considerable
numbers in Essex, Suffolk and Hampshire. About 1875 it was again taken
near Colchester by Mr. J. G. Grapes, and more recently it has been found
sparingly in Cambridgeshire by the Hon. N. Charles Rothschild and others.
Mr. Donisthorpe also obtained 11 specimens in the same county this year,
after spending a considerable time in searching for them. Near Colchester,
a working man who was out with his butterfly-net one summer morning chanced
to notice several ash trees which had been almost entirely denuded of their
leaves, and while he was examining into the cause he saw one of the beetles
flying towards him, its glittering armour resplendent in the sunshine. This
he netted, and presently came to another tree, upon which were a large
number of specimens within easy reach, and proceeded to bottle some eighty
of them. Unfortunately, he did not know what an important capture he had
made, and left most of the specimens in the bottle till they were spoiled, but
pinned a few and recently brought them to me to determine. Having been
told by the late Dr. Churchill where he had principally noticed the species in
1837, I visited the district, and found that scores of trees over a wide area
showed unmistakable signs of its ravages. To account for the amount of
feeding the beetles must have been present in enormous numbers, as many of
the trees are of considerable size, and nearly all had been extensively eaten.
I have frequently looked for them in the same locality myself in previous
years, but never had the good fortune to find them, and felt more than a
little disappointed when I saw that I had this year missed such an opportunity
as I shall probably never have again."
BOTANY.
Centaurea solstitialis and Triglochin palustre near Witham.—
Possibly the two following records may be of interest to the readers of the
Essex Naturalist :—
Centaurea (Calcitrapa) solstitialis.—Star-Thistle. This occurs as a casual in
fields of lucerne, but although I have searched such localities for many
years, it did not come under my notice until the August of 1901, when it was
found in plenty at Witham.
Triglochin palustre was also found about the same time in the above parish.
Edwin E. Turner, Coggeshall, Essex.
METEOROLOGY.
Meteorological Statistics at Colchester.—Mr. H. Goodyear, the
Borough Surveyor at Colchester, states that meteorological readings have been
taken in his office for the last 15 years, and he gives some interesting
statistics. The rainfall for the year 1901 was only 14.11 inches, the smallest
annual rainfall ever recorded in Colchester, and for that matter in any town
in England, and excluding towns of less than 30,000 inhabitants, Colchester
is the dryest town in England.
The weather has been exceptionally bright also, as there were only 105
days on which rain fell; and this is also unprecedented.