132 SOUTH AFRICAN BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



As the group is very important from many points of view^ 

 and as it is numerically one of the largest, I will, how- 

 ever, devote a little more space to it than I have to other 

 orders. The number of species now described is nearly 

 6,000. but probably only one-fifth is catalogued. 



I^erhaps no order of insects is as dependent on varied 

 vegetation to produce such a large number of species as 

 we find in the butterflies and moths, and no fauna is 

 perhaps so readily affected b}^ the change of the flora as 

 the Lepidoptera. Fortunately it is a group that attracts 

 and always has attracted the attention of the entomolo- 

 gist, and of the butterflies comparatively few remain to 

 be discovered in S. Africa. This we owe to Trimen's ex- 

 cellent monogTaph and to the more recent work on 

 Aethiopean Bhopalocera by Prof. Aurivillius. However,, 

 the life-histories of ninety-five in every hundred species 

 are unknown. Yerj few of our Museums have a really 

 good collection of butterflies. The South African Museum 

 stands in the front in this respect, as it contains the 

 Trimen collection. Next comes the Transvaal Museum^ 

 where the RhopaJocern exhibit is conspicuous for its 

 beautiful condition and its many rarities. Then we have 

 the ^lillar collection, purchased by the Durban Museum; 

 unfortunately, this collection, well preserved as many 

 specimens are, is without locality labels, and though 

 most specimens are from the coastlands of Natal, yet 

 tlie scientific value is greatly diminished. Other S. Afri- 

 can ^luseum collections consist of little more than a few 

 sliow-specimens, which in many instances are anything 

 but showy. It is indeed time that these different institu- 

 tions receive facilities to obtain and preserve first-class 

 collections before many of the most interesting forms 

 have disappeared for ever. 



In addition, several larger or smaller collections were 

 made by private workers, the best being perhaps the one 

 made by Mr. Feltham, of Johannesburg. Here, again, it 

 is to be hoped that this collection will not be lost to a 

 Government institution, where in the future it may have 



