THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 57 



poses claimed. They may be of aid in case of families and genera ; but 

 are unreliable, and therefore valueless in case of species. 



We now come to the list of species, p. 460. I shall speak only of 

 the North American species, for I have no acquaintance with others, ex- 

 cept such as specimens of the butterflies in my collection afford, and in 

 several cases I have never seen the species. Under JVevadensis, Felder, 

 are ranged Gigas, Butler, Caiifornica, Bdvl., and Iduna, Edw. "After 

 comparing very numerous specimens in my own and other collections, 

 from California, Oregon, Washington and Vancouver Island, of which 

 the last was sent me by Mr. Fletcher as Gif^as, I cannot allow that the 

 differences relied on by Mr. W. H. Edwards between these Californica 

 and Iduna are of any weight, and I have no hesitation in uniting these 

 four supposed forms. The habitat of this species is peculiar. I have 

 TAKEN IT in Oregon, at about 2,000 feet, flying in stony or rocky pine 

 zvoods, where there was not much undergrowth. It occurs as high as y,ooo 

 feet, on Mt. Hood, in the same State, according to Morrison, and is com- 

 mon in the pine forests of Mendocino County, California." That is 

 as good a sample of the illumination of this author as I could select. He 

 has become possessed of, or has seen numerous specimens of this species, 

 (one, or at most a trifling number, was sent him as Gigas), and under- 

 takes to decide offhand that all these forms are one species, and that it 

 flies in Vancouver Island, Mendocino and Oregon. Mr. W. G. Wright 

 has taken Gigas on Vancouver Island two seasons ; has taken Iduna at 

 Mendocino two, if not three, seasons ; and Californica in Washington. 

 He is positive that they are three distinct species, from their habits of 

 flight, and his observations on their behaviour in natural state ; and from 

 the character of the regions they constantly inhabit. Mr. Fletcher, who 

 has taken Gigas in Vancouver, has written me since he has seen this Re- 

 vision : — "I don't agree with him that Nevadensis is the same as Cali- 

 fornica and Gigas at all. All three are to my mind quite distinct, in the 

 males at any rate." 



I, myself, have never seen one of these species alive, but I have bred 

 two of them from egg to adult larva, namely, Idiaia and Californica, in 

 both cases the larvte reaching the adult stage the same season, but dying 

 before pupation ; and twice I have reared larvae of Gigas to the second 

 moult, when they all hibernated. In fact, I have, or ought to have, larvae of 

 Gigas alive to-day. And from these stages, and the behaviour of the larvae, 

 I am certain there are three species. As Mr. Elwes speaks of the " differ- 



