INTRODUCTION 29 



and immediately commenced an investigation of the insular 

 fauna. 



Popof Island is about ten miles long by five wide, and geo- 

 logically speaking is of purely volcanic origin. It is treeless, 

 and the largest forms of vegetation are dwarf alder bushes and 

 a variety of willows. The central part is very little above sea 

 level, but from this the land slopes up in all directions, termi- 

 nating in most cases in promontories and cliffs overlooking the 

 ocean. The form of the island thus suggests a great shallow 

 bowl. On the southern side a large hill rises to an elevation of 

 about 1,200 feet, while the northern side is very rugged, the 

 principal feature being a long semicircular range of hills rising 

 in the middle to an altitude of over 1,700 feet. The drainage 

 of the basin-like area in the interior is carried to the sea by a 

 small stream which tumbles into the ocean in a series of spark- 

 ling cascades. The interior also contains several small lakes 

 occupying depressions in the tundra. 



The investigation of the insect fauna of this charming isle 

 was a never-to-be-forgotten experience. The limited area, and 

 the ease with which it could be traversed, together with the 

 favorable weather that by good fortune was vouchsafed us, and 

 the length of the stay (ten days) made it possible to assemble a 

 reasonably representative collection of the insects present at 

 that season of the year. 



The time of our visit happened to coincide with the height of 

 the flowering season. A memorandum of the flowering plants 

 collected, necessarily very incomplete, makes a list of over one 

 hundred species. On the slopes near the sea shore the princi- 

 pal elements in this varied flora were the omnipresent Heracleum 

 lanatum, Coelopleurum gmelini^ Geranium erianthum,CastiUeja 

 pallida, Achillea niiHcfoIium, Lathyrus maritimus, Iris setosa, 

 Sieversia calthifolia, Cypri-pedium guttatum, Orchis aristata, 

 Aconitum delphinifolium, and Polemonium ccerulcum. In the 

 marshy places and on the tundra were another series, such as 

 Mimulus langsdorffii, Empetrum nigrum, Pinguicula vulgar is ^ 

 Betula sp., Petasitcs frigida, Arctostaphylos sp., Valeriana 

 capitata, Drosera vulgaris, Comariim palustre, S^ucrtia pcr- 

 cnm's, Habenaria obtusata, Habenaria bracteata, and Parnas- 



