Three weeks' holiday among the butterflies of Switzerland. 291 



ally over the tops of mountain ridges. Next came the interesting, but 

 no less confusing, Argynnids — Melitara aiirinia, one freshly emerged ; 

 M. ciiLtia, several worn ; M. athalia, and, I think, M. ilictiinna, very 

 common everywhere; lUcntJiis enphroKijuc, common, hwi passe ; B. pales, 

 common at a higher altitude; B. dia, fairly common; B. ainathiisia, 

 very common, one in the larval state crawling with great speed in 

 the hot sun on the banks of Lac des Chavonnes, and seeking a place 

 to pupate. It fixed itself up for that purpose in a pillbox before I 

 got back to the hotel, pupated there satisfactorily, and the imago 

 emerged at Paris on the homeward journey. I also took two fresh 

 examples of B. ino in the fields round Villars. Arf/i/nnis lathonia I 

 noticed and missed on several occasions, only taking two near Perche. 

 A. a;/laia was common, and I caught one truly magnificent black 

 aberration with the majority of the silver spots on the under-surface 

 represented in deep bronze set in a dark green belt. It was taken 

 casually as it flew across the road near the hotel, and for a moment I 

 did not know what to make of it. It is in perfect condition, and as I 

 carefully pinned it, I wished much that it were possible to show both 

 sides. I find that one very much like it is figured in Curtis' British 

 Entoiiiulo(/i/, caught at Ipswich, in 1827, but mine is, I think, an even 

 more striking aberration. A. niuhe was very common, though I have 

 only captured a single example of the silver-spotted type ; A. adippe, 

 too, was common, and one specimen which I obtained has the under- 

 side very richly banded with brown. Among the Satyrids Mela)ianiia 

 j/alat/wa was one of the commonest butterflies, and was accompanied 

 by plenty of Paranje viaera. I am not sure that I saw P. DU't/aera, but 

 llipparcJda semele and Kpinephele ianira were there, and Knodia hyper- 

 anthits in the greatest abundance. I am still in doubt as to the 

 identification of some of my Erebiid captures. I certainly took a good 

 series of Erebia nielainpiis, K. niaiito, E. tijndarus, E. acthidjis, ]\. liyea, 

 and one specimen of E. cnii/alr. The others I cannot identify for 

 certain, nor a Lyc*nid taken at Villars, which is nearly black on the 

 upper surface, (.'ui'iionijnip/ia ijihis and, I think, ( '. sati/rian were taken 

 in small numbers, while the ever-abundant < '. paiiipltilns was left to 

 enjoy its freedom. Among the Hesperids, I'aiiiphila si/lniuHs, Thijiiirlicus 

 titauiiias, and Nisoniades tcujes were present, and one specimen I think 

 must be SpilotJnjrus altheae. Of the Syrichthids again I dare not say 

 what species I have taken. 



My two days' hunting at Zermatt afforded other species. Baynassius 

 apolla, six or eight good specimens in the Visp Valley, below Zermatt. 

 On the Rifi'el Alp I observed Brcnthis pales, again in some abund- 

 ance, and higher up, in fact at the top of the Gornergrat, I took a 

 good specimen of Pieris callidice, and rejected several others that were 

 too much worn. On returning by a short cut to the Findeln glacier 

 hotel, I took Erebia tipidarus, and one specimen of Colias palaeno flying 

 with C. pliicoinone, and three specimens of PuhjoiniiiatHs orbitnlns in 

 poor condition. Some very fresh specimens of Xoniiadcsscniiari/Ksweve 

 again noticed flitting over puddles in the road ; a lovely fresh specimen 

 of Melitaea phoebc occurred on the way down to Zermatt, and two specimens 

 of a neat little fritillary which 1 have designated M. jiaitlwnic, and a 

 short series of Pamphila comma. As the sun set behind the Matterhorn 

 I found the grass blades and scrubby juniper bushes, on the banks of 

 the Visp, literally covered with Plcbvins ar(jas,oi which, thinking it was 



