52 THE REPORT OF THE No. 19 



remarked that he had seen an Archippi(s butterfly before that. As scarcely any of the observ- 

 ations published upon the movements of Archippus have come from New York State, I take the 

 liberty of giving publici'y to the remarks on the subject which he so kindly favored me with, 

 never suspecting that they would go into print. But as they are so interesting in themselves 

 besides assisting in illuminating a page of Ardtippus history, I take pleasure in producing them 

 for. the benefit and enjoyment of others. 



" My observations, Entomologically, are very meagre so far. O.ie Archippus butterfly wa.s 

 noted. This one was sailing along rapidly, a couple of feet from the ground, with an eye open 

 for the first appearance of the milk weed no doubt, and was skimming northward eight or nine 



Fig. 31. -The Archippus Butterfly. 



miles an hour. It was a worn specimen, and though its progress through the air was much 

 faster, its angling flight searching for milkweed would bring initial progress at ab >ut this figure. 

 As I was following in my buggy and had the example in sight some ten minutes I could judge 

 pretty well of its progress. 



" But in crossing water much better time is made, of course, and I have made some observa- 

 tions here. I have explained how my home is situated on the shore of Long Island Sound, a 

 long, narrow body of salt water, eight miles wide at this part, and 120 miles long. Long Island, 

 a great sandbank of glacial days, lies the other side of this Sound, and divides it from the 

 Atlantic ocean. Although the warm Gulf Stre im swerves off from our coast much further 

 south, still there is some effect on the Long Islahd fauna, and it affords many features belong- 

 ing to a more southern latitude. So naturally we may look for southern migrants from that 

 quarter, and this is amply borne out in actual observations. In my younger days, when the 

 " struggle for existence," etc., was not so pressing, I used to find time for a day's fishing now 

 and then, and in a row-boat would anchor a half mile out from the shore on some submerged 

 reef, in about thirty feet of water, and catch the rock-bass in which the Sound abounds. 

 Passing a day in this manner, one has time between bites —both of the bass and of luncheon — 

 to notice what is going on overhead. And one is sure to be struck with the number of butter- 

 flies constantly coming from the Island to the main shore. We might expect the supply to be 

 largest on the main land, and that emigration would be going the other way, yet it is invariably 

 as first stated. By far the largest number seen will be Archippus, next Fapilios &nd Colkts 

 Philodice. Archippus fly at the highest elevation, but begin to drop on nearing shore, so on 

 passing the fishing grounds are sometimes within reach. I have watched them so many times, 

 and their numbers and flight are surprisingly regular. The species seems on the wing continually^ 

 during the last half of the season, and their flight over the Sound waters seems most methodi- 



