AN EARLY VISIT TO RANMORE COMMON. 



131 



At last the top of the common was reached, towards the western 

 end, where the woods were more open, with a growth of holly bushes, 

 hawthorn and scattered oaks, and here too were C. aripoliis males quite- 

 common, with (j. rliaiiini interspersed. This was the old spot for 

 Trirojiti'ri/r (Lobuphora) rirctata, but I have heard of no records of the 

 species having been taken here of late years. Passing through the 

 gate at the western end of the common a sharp turn to the left W'as 

 made along an old bridle-])ath through the beautiful woods on the level 

 to the very crest of the hill which dominates the wooded hollow in the 

 downs known as Pickett's Hole. In this neighbourhood at the right 

 time abundance of Ilaiitearis biciuit, early and late races of Anthrocera 

 t'ilipend lilac, a race of A. trifolii, plenty of Ai/riades coridon, etc., occur. 

 Here too in past years I have taken Melanaryia i/alatliea and Paran/e 

 aeiieria. Now all to be seen were Gnneptery.v rhawni of both sexes 

 with one or two examples of Kuchlor cardmnines^ and a solitary 

 Pieria napi S The woods were filled at this date with bluebells, and 

 having hitherto rarely visited Ranmore Common without meeting 

 white aberrations of this beautiful flower of spring, I pushed into the 

 undergrowth and almost immediately found several spikes of pure 

 white. A halt for an al fresco lunch was made on the top of this coign 

 of vantage, where there is an extensive view of the beautiful Holmesdale 

 valley stretching from Reigate on the east, with the sand ridge of 

 Reigate Park on the south of it, as far as Guildford on the west. The 

 village of Betchworth and the town of Dorking, where the river Mole 

 and the Horsham and Portsmouth line pass through the chalk of 

 the North Downs, with Leith Hill, the highest point of Surrey, to 

 the south, while the pretty village of Abinger is directly below. The 

 continuation of the high sandy ridge from Leith Hill, covered by 

 pines., lies right away towards Guildford on the West, with a glimpse 

 of the isolated sandy mount of St. Martha's Hill in the middle of 

 the valley, in view at the same time is the winding track of the S.E. 

 Railway, which traverses the whole length from Guildford to Red 

 Hill, and affords numerous means of ready access to the prolific 

 collecting districts on both sides. 



The area of Ranmore Common is so well besprinkled with notice 

 boards that one would suggest that the preparation, etc., of them, 

 must form a considerable industry in the neighbourhood. The fact is 

 that there are many public paths and several " private roads " (which 

 often means public path) as well as private tracks. These boards are 

 so ambiguously placed that it is quite impossible to tell which path is 

 forbidden, the only indication one can get is that at least one of the 

 tracks is public, which of course to the average entomologist is more 

 than sufficient. A ramble through the western portion of these woods 

 on the crest, the spot for the Tcphrosia species and Poarmia abietarioy 

 produced nothing but P. cardamincs, P. napi and G. ihaiiini. A path 

 leading on to the open common again was taken with the intention of 

 ascertaining how the "land thieves" were progressing with an 

 old lane I have watched for many years as becoming more and more 

 overgrown. As expected I found that the neglect and overgrowth of 

 years has now been successful. There is a fence across the entrance, 

 the first portion of the road cleared of undergrowth, and dug up, 

 showing a plentiful crop of the flints that formed the road and young 

 firtrees thickly planted. Twenty years ago this was an open track 



