HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP, 



2S1 



expected it till next May. Two cynthias also have 

 since emerged. Is it usual for them to emerge so 

 soon ? The other cocoons of the same batch of 

 larva; are still in my possession, and there are no signs 

 of the imagines emerging. — IV. Finch, jun., Notting- 

 ham. 



May-Flies. — Many years ago, I was curate at 

 Shipton-on-Cherwell. The meadows had been mown 

 some time. The May-fly season over. Walking 

 along the canal with my wife, we noticed thousands 

 of May-flies. " These, said I, are new to science." 

 I rushed back for my scissors-forceps net. Soon had 

 one, held it up in triumph. Wife, " I only see a little 

 yellow thing with no tail : " only too true. I saw the 

 fly trying all he could do to get out, but no tail. 

 Looking more closely I found a long bit of withered 

 grass, about five times the length of my captive. 

 Caught a lot of them. All alike, with their long bit 

 of withered grass clasped in their arms. Showed them 

 to the squire and an old parsonic angling friend. The 

 up and down movement was solemn and sedative, like 

 a poker with wings, not the beautiful abdominal curve 

 of the true May-fly with her three caudal hairs. It 

 was a solemn and grave observance — the purport 

 \> hereof I fail to understand. — A. H. B. 



Species of Chrysomela. — The chrysomela which 

 I had hitherto supposed to be polita was rather larger 

 than the one described in the July number, and of an 

 uniform brassy colour, the legs inclining to reddish ; of 

 this form (C. staphylaca ?) I have found specimens at 

 Chislehurst and at Hammersmith. I have also speci- 

 mens of a larger species of chrysomela (which I take to 

 be C. violacea) from Chislehurst and St. Mary Cray, 

 Kent. It is of a bluish-violet colour ; its wings are pink. 

 Besides these I have also two other species of chryso- 

 mela, one is rather small, and of a grass-green 

 colour ; it was found on Hypericum (?) at Chislehurst ; 

 the other is larger, its form is not so globular, its 

 wings are rosy-red, and its thorax and elytra are of a 

 brilliant green colour; it was found, I believe, at 

 Constantinople. I shall be much obliged to Mr. Hey 

 if he will kindly name these for me ; I should also 

 like to know the name of a curious Longicorne that 

 was brought to me at Beckenham, in May, 1882. I 

 put it into a box, and when I went to kill and set it 

 I found it had escaped through a hole which I had 

 not before noticed. I at once sat down and wrote 

 the following description (which is, I think, correct) 

 from memory. Length about half an inch (perhaps 

 more), thorax wrinkled (?), elytra very curiously 

 marked ; nearest the thorax was an umber-brown 

 portion, which was sharply cut off on its lower side 

 by a white line, which, together with that on the 

 other elytron, formed a wedge-shaped mark, the 

 point of which pointed towards the thorax. Below 

 this was another similar line ; the rest of the elytron 

 was grey, The grey part, as far as I can remember, 

 comprised about half of the elytron. It was found 

 near an oak-tree, from which, on the same day, I got 

 a larva of Hclida qucrcana, but could not find any 

 more specimens of this curious Longicorne. — T. D. A. 

 Cockerel/. 



Entomologising on the Transkei.— The 

 following is an extract from the letter of a naturalist : 

 — " We are going on much as usual here. Our stay 

 down at the sea was very refreshing, and has done us 

 all good, and we all enjoyed it, although our only 

 excitements were bathing and catching butterflies. 

 It was a wonderful year for these, and we did right 

 welL I trust some day to show you the collection 

 we have made here ; it is a very good one, and I have 

 no doubt by far the best ever got by one man in South 



Africa. I think we have nearly 200 sorts. Some of 

 our rounds with various insects have been good and 

 interesting. There is a genus called Nymphalis, the 

 members of which are chiefly large butterflies ; by- 

 the-by, Xiphares, you know, who is the largest, but 

 by no means the smartest flier. There is one of them, 

 Nymphalis Brutus, who flies as fast as — if he chooses 

 — any swallow, and but seldom comes near the 

 ground, and is generally seen soaring over the highest 

 forest trees. He is a most lovely insect, and my spirit 

 yearned over him and my heart craved to get him 

 within the magic circle of my net. Two years ago I 

 found a place where there were a few of them, but 

 they never came near the ground. I felled the tree 

 over which they frequently flew, and on the trunk, 

 some six feet from the ground, spread sugar and wine, 

 &C, a most succulent mixture. Alas ! in vain. I 

 then got honey, and spread that. Bees and inferior 

 butterflies came in swarms and consumed my honey, 

 but Brutus was not to be inveigled. I was in despair ; 

 but one morning for breakfast I was consuming some 

 very ' golopshous ' greengage jam, and thought I to 

 myself, ' Drat that Brutus ; wonder if he'd like 

 greengage jam.' I took the balance of the pot with 

 me and spread it on the tree. In 30 seconds Brutus 

 was there, in 35 he was in my net, and in 60 in my 

 collecting box. Another came and shared a similar 

 fate. I then of course thought I was going to take all 

 the Brutuses (? Bruti or Brutes) in the Transkei, but 

 not another came, and, although I saw many flying 

 over, not a single one came near the jam again. I 

 then of course thought it was a fluke, and that 

 anything else would have done as well as greengage 

 jam, and I mourned for all the wasted pots of that 

 most excellent decoction of turnip, potato, and old 

 plum stones. Well, this visit down to the sea side, 

 Cyril and I found a most charming piece of forest on 

 the banks of the Lora river, a mile or so from our 

 huts, which was a glorious place for butterflies, and 

 here we saw many Bruti soaring about over the trees. 

 We looked at them and admired their splendid 

 plumage and gorgeous array with longing eyes. 

 Again I had recourse to saccharine luxuries ; at first 

 honey, secondly a bag wet with sugar straining and 

 redolent of molasses. No go ! Brutus still flew 

 about triumphant and jeering, with the end of his off 

 fore leg applied to the end of his proboscis. Dash 

 my buttons ! thought I ; but I will try the greengage 

 once more. I spread a whole pot of it on the sugar bag, 

 lit my pipe, and sat me down to watch. In less than an 

 hour I had caught four beauties, and so intent were they 

 on consuming the mixture, that, when once settled, 

 I believe I could have taken them with my fingers. 

 Well, again I thought I should catch lots of them. 

 Not a single one settled on the jam again, although I 

 wasted lots of it in trying places where there were 

 many of the desired butterflies. We did by luck 

 catch two more of them, but not a single one settled 

 on the jam after that first hour. We also found a 

 place where a most lovely butterfly delighted to 

 disport himself. This was Nymphalis Ethalion; the 

 deepest purple-black all over, except for two or three 

 tiny blue spots on his hind wings, which are adorned 

 with four tails. This pet place of his was about 40 

 or 50 feet from the ground, on the top of a tree 

 covered with monkey ropes and creepers, uncommonly 

 thorny ones too, worse luck. After much groaning 

 and grunting, tearing of hands, shirt and breeches, I 

 managed to skin up and crawl through the creepers, 

 and wedge myself with my head out atop, butterfly net 

 and pole in hand; the same old salmon rod that 

 you used to use at Fairy Knowe. After a time I had 

 a regular high road up to this place, and used to hip 

 up in a few seconds when I had got the way clear. I 



