THE CAXADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 17 



if not filled to the top with specimens, should have the empty space filled 

 with crumpled pieces of paper, then filled with spirit, and tightly corked ; 

 all the bottles may then be packed into a larger one, or jar, also filled with 

 alcohol and tightly corked. 



In return for any specimens {(qw as well as many) kindly sent to me, I 

 shall be happy (if wished) to return named specimens, or to give in return 

 named British I.epidoptera, Coleoptera, Hemiptera, or Flowering Plants ; 

 or in certain cases I shall be glad to buy specimens. 



Communications may be addressed to 



Dr. Buchanan White, Perth, Scotland. 



CORRESPONDENCE. 



Dear Sir,— 



In Ent. for Nov., Mr. Lyman calls attention to an apparent discre- 

 pancy between a statement made by me as to the appearance of the sexes 

 of butterflies and the facts as he has observed them. My statement had 

 reference solely to the butterflies emerging from chrysalids of bred larvae. 

 No one has failed to observe in the field that the males of most butterflies 

 are seen from several days to two weeks earlier than the fem^ales. I have 

 repeatedly mentioned this myself See notes on ajax, on aphrodite, and 

 pseudargiolus, in Butt. N. A., vol. i ; also, on cybele, Ent., 6, 124. Never- 

 theless, in breeding I have found that either sex may first appear, or they 

 will alternate irregularly until the whole brood has emerged. See mention 

 of this on page 11, Butt. N. A., where of two broods of ajax the females 

 first emerged. It is so with all Papilios, Colias, Graptas, etc., etc., that I 

 have bred in any numbers. Of course when one or two butterflies of a 

 brood only were raised, the result would be of no value. Thus a single 

 diana and a single aphrodite emerged out of a large number of larvae 

 hatched of each. But in other cases I have bred the butterflies by scores 

 and hundreds, and the result was as stated. In case of clyton, the behavior 

 was difterent ; see Butt. N. A., vol. 2. "Why such diff'erences between 

 species of butterflies occur, or why bred examples should behave differ- 

 ently from those in the field, I do not attempt to explain. 



W. H. Edwards, Coalburgh, W. Va. 



