Irish Butterflies. 57 



Mr. Barrett's descriptions of the various species and their varieties are 

 excellent. We are glad to see that he does not think it necessary to 

 -coin a number of varietal names, though he describes and figures many 

 striking aberrations, several of which are from Ireland. Notable among 

 these is Mr. Russ's dark form of Pieris napi, from Sligo, approaching the 

 continental alpine var. bryonies. Mr. Barrett has collected a mine of facts 

 on the subject of variation, but he leaves it to others to propound theories 

 in explanation thereof. From his own observations and the scattered 

 records of many workers, he gives full accounts of the habits, time of 

 appearance, &c. , of each species, as well as details of the preparatory 

 stages. Lists of past and present localities are full enough to enable us to 

 trace the varying range of each insect. This, alas ! in many cases has 

 become more and more restricted, and it is to be feared that two of 

 the finest English butterflies — Aporia craicegi and Lyccena acis — have gone 

 the way of Polyommaius dispar. 



Four species of butterflies are given established places on the British 

 list by Mr. Barrett, on the strength of captures during the last few years. 

 The most striking is an American immigrant — Danais archippus — which 

 has occurred in southern and south-western England, and South Wales, 

 and might well be expected to visit Ireland occasionally. The two new 

 *' Blues " — Lyccena bcelica and L. argiades — are south of England species, and 

 might very likely be found near the south coast of Ireland. The new 

 "Skipper" — Hesperia lineola — seems to have its headquarters in East 

 Anglia, and is hardly likely to occur with us. The British list now 

 numbers sixty-eight species, but one of these is certainly, and two 

 others are probably, extinct. 



Of these Mr. Kane inserts forty in his new Irish list. The necessity 

 for a revision of Birchall's list of 1866 has long been felt, and we rejoice 

 that the naturalist best qualified for the task has now begun it. Not 

 only have numerous important, but scattered, records, and avast amount 

 of unpublished material to be added, but not a few erroneous entries 

 have to be expunged. Mr. Kane tells us, in his introduction, that he 

 has clear evidence of the wrong determination of certain of the species 

 recorded by Birchall. As he remarks, it is of the greatest importance 

 that these should be noted and struck off, that the workers of the future 

 may have a good foundation on which to build. Though better known 

 than any other group of insects, there is yet much to be discovered about 

 Irish lepidoptera. 



Forty-three species of butterflies were given as Irish by Birchall in 

 1 866. Four of these — Aporia cratcegi, Vanessa polychloros, Lyccena astrarche 

 (agestis), and L. corydon — were withdrawn by him in 1873, Du t two others, 

 Vanessa c-album and Syrichthus malvoe, were added. Both of these however 

 are omitted by Mr. Kane ; the latter appears to have been wrongly iden- 

 tified, while the former was not captured, only observed— at a distance of 

 several yards, as we have been told by one who was in company with the 

 observer. 



Another species in the 1866 list — Nemeobius lucinia — which rests upon 

 unlocalised specimens in the Dublin University Museum, is also left out. 



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