NOTES ON A HOLIDAY IN SOUTH-EASTERN FRANCE. 251 



pair, so lonoj as we were able to observe it, differed in certain respects 

 from that of the pair observed by Dr. Chapman. My notes made at 

 the time indicate that when I wrote them 1 was of opinion that the 

 male was courted by the female. At any rate the pursuer was a larger 

 and paler insect than the pursued, and so far as I could judge its 

 abdomen strongly pointed to its being the female. I do not la}' claim 

 to infallibility on this point — I merely state my impressions at the 

 time. This larger and paler insect took up a position in regard to its 

 partner similar to that assigned to the male in Dr. Chapman's pair ; 

 iDut its antennae, diverging at an angle of 45°, fell over the outspread 

 hindwings of the butterfly in front, and by a series of nervous spasms, 

 continuing as if by clockwork, struck the hindwings perfectly audible 

 blows with great regularity. I counted these blows by my watch for 

 several minutes and found them to average about seventeen to the 

 minute. We watched this pair for 25 minutes, during which period 

 it rose in the air three times and took up a fresh basking position ; 

 finally, however, it disappeared over a hedge and I was unable to 

 follow it. 



I was much struck with the scarcity at Abries of Leptoaia siiiapis ; 

 in a ten days' stay I do not think I saw a score. Of Albidina pJteretes 

 I came across only one example on the Crete de la Reychasse, but 

 Latiorina oibitulm was numerous at its proper elevation on most of 

 the mountains. In the main valley above Abries I found Coenoui/mpha 

 iphis in plenty on July 19th, and on the same date I took some 30 

 larvae of Callophrj/s rnbi on Hippoplia'e. They proved to be terrible 

 cannibals, being especially fond of soft pupa?. The bushes of FJipjmphae 

 were swarming, especially on their lower branches, with larvte of 

 Saturnia paconia {carpiui). 



The journey from Mont Dauphin to Digne, with its lengthy breaks 

 at Gap, Veynes and St. Auban, was wearisome and tedious in the 

 extreme. After an unpalatable meal at Veynes station we sallied 

 forth into the countryside for an hour and managed to take our 

 first example of Satyras circe. At Digne our experience was much 

 like that of other entomologists and there is little of interest to be 

 recorded. Our principal hunting ground was the famous gorge on 

 the left bank of the Eaux Chaudes, above the Baths, and here we took 

 most of the usual butterflies. Zephi/nis querciis was frequent in the 

 early morning on the path over which ran a stream of water. 

 CoenonynipJia donts frequented the blossoms of Melissa and other 

 Labiates in great numbers ; Sati/nis cordiila was very nearly over, 

 even the females being in tatters but S. actaea was just coming out 

 and in grand condition. S. cvrcc, S. briseis, S. heniiione, and Hipparchia 

 semele were fairly numerous ; of 5. fidia we took about a score from 

 the heads of EnjiKjiiuii, of which the species is excessively fond, but 

 Hipparchia arcthtisa was only just emerging at the time of our 

 departure on July 30th. I took a large female Apatura ilia var. 

 cbjile from a tree in front of the Baths on July 25th, and, thanks to a 

 note by Mr. Sheldon, which appeared shortly before I left home, I 

 managed to get a short series of the summer form of Leptosia duponcheli 

 (July 23rd-July 28th). At that time L. sinapis was very worn. One 

 or two fairly good examples of Fapilio ale.vanor were to be met with 

 and the larvae of all sizes could be found in some numbers. I have 

 read somewhere that one never finds more than one larva on a plant 



