﻿64 Journal New V(3Rk Ent. Soc. [Voi. in. 



milbertii \NO\Ad be seen, and offered a hard chase over the rough rocks. 

 A beautiful species of Eristalus (^E. bastardi), would occasionally be 

 seen on the cardinal flowers, looking exactly like a brightly colored 

 bee. On passing a pit of clay baked dry by the sun, I indifferently 

 kicked over a loose piece, and underneath was a fine specimen of Cychrus 

 elevatus ; it surprised me to find a Cychrus in such a place, as there 

 was no vegetation in the pit, which was very dry and offered no food 

 for snails. 



On up the mountain side an occasional Thecla and Argynnis would 

 be seen. Cicada canicular is was making the woods ring with its 

 sharp notes. When nearing the summit, on rather barren ground, a 

 species of grasshopper, Circotettix verruculatus, was very abundant, ris- 

 ing by the dozen, and making a sharp crackling noise as it flew. Here 

 an old rotten log which I stopped to investigate yielded 1 30 specimens 

 of Phenolia grossa, and were at once named "turtle bugs" by the 

 country boy with me. 



At last on the summit, and there on the lichen-covered rocks was 

 looking into the valley below and enjoying a magnificent view of the 

 surrounding country. Hill after hill rose in wild confusion, covered 

 with dense growth of fir and other trees. The enormous rock on which 

 I stood sloped downwards in a dangerous incline to a ledge about four 

 feet wide, from which was a precipice of fully three hundred feet, at the 

 bottom of which began the thick woods of the mountain side. 



Happening to glance at the ledge, there to my joy was the long 

 looked for Crotalus. It lay tightly coiled with its long string of rat- 

 tles elevated in the centre of its folds, the beautiful sulphur tints of its 

 velvety scales showing vividly in the sunlight. Slowly and carefully I 

 made my way down toward him, assisted by the handle of my butterfly 

 net. which also served as a snake stick, but when half way down the 

 wily snake saw me coming, and, preferring security rather than combat, 

 retreated into a hole in the cliff totally inaccessible to me. Slowly 

 making my way up, and when near the top, I saw in front what appeared 

 to be a slight bump on the rock ; but on coming up to it there was a 

 flash of yellow wings and it flew off. After a perilous chase the insect 

 was captured and it proved to be Spharagemon saxatile. So e.xactly did 

 it mimic the lichen-covered rock that I would surely have passed it had 

 it not moved. Mr. Beutenmiiller, of the American jNIuseum of Natural 

 History, informs me that the insect has only recently been discovered. 

 It seemed to be rare, for in my entire stay only one more was seen, 

 and that in the same locality, on the rocks at an elevation. 



