/lO MOTHS OF SOUTHERN KHCJDKSIA. 



t, ' 



Victoria Falls and Sawmills, yielded less typical forms than 

 I anticipated from the flora. 



In formino- any opinion about the collection, one or two 

 points should be borne in mind : firstly, the trip on which the 

 collection was made was more or less a survey to ffain informa- 

 tion for further detailed research work, and consenuentl}' a 

 g"reat deal of time had to be wasted in unprofitable travelling^ ; 

 secondly, the time of the year during^ which the collecting had 

 to be done was not the best time, as it was between the first 

 and the second 'brood, October and November. February and 

 March would have been better, but being tied down to Decem- 

 ber and January, I have always to make the best of it ; thirdly. 

 the season was abnormally wet, so much so that at Umtali, for 

 instance, where I camped out for 12 days, it rained ten nights 

 and practically every day between 12 and 5 P-ni., and as the 

 day-time had to be used for preparing the specimens caught 

 at night, very little daylight collecting could be done. 



The above will, I, think, show sufficiently what results could 

 be obtained if such research work could be carried out — as it 

 should be — on a larger scale. 



If we wish to have some clear insight into the original 

 fauna and flora of our beautiful South Africa, it is important 

 that no more time be lost ; for it is certain that in the near 

 future, not only will the mammalian fauna have been completely 

 changed or, shall I say, wijjed out, even in remote parts of 

 South Africa, such as Southern Rhodesia, Imt the northward 

 march of the agriculturist will have destroyed or changed the 

 original flora, and consequently much of the original insect life 

 which cannot adapt itself to the new conditions will have dis- 

 appeared. 



In view of this I was verv pleased to hear that a botanical 

 survey was g'oing to be organised shortly, and judging by the 

 people who have interested themselves in it, I feel sure that 

 it will be a success. But why should not also a zoological survey 

 be organised? I think we shall all agree that animals adapt 

 themselves even less than plants to changed conditions, and it 

 is also certain that up to the present our fauna is far less per- 

 fectly known than our flora. With an organised, zoological 

 survey many of the disadvantages of the present system of 

 research, perhaps the most unnatural system in existence", and 

 certainly not worthy of men of science, would fall away. To 

 begin with, overlapping — a typical feature of the present system 

 — would be avoided, and thus more and better results could be 

 produced with the same amount of labour; many now neglected 

 branches of research could be attended to, and each branch could 

 work in co-operation with another allied branch ; perhaos 

 government support could be secured, if not now, then in the 

 near future, and, what is perhaps worth more than all of these 

 combined, the separate institutions and jirivate workers con- 

 cerned would be stimulated to produce the highest qualitv and 

 quantity. Especially in this country, where pure scientific work 



