LEPIDOPTEEA OF THE GOESCHENEN DISTRICT. 269 



The Lepidoptera of the Goeschenen District. 



By J. W. TUTT, F.E.S. 

 Although at no great elevation, the conditions of the Goeschenen 

 district are decidedly sab-alpine, inclining to alpine. It may be 

 noted that one has only to reach a very little altitude above the Lake 

 of Lucerne before this sub-alpine character forces itself upon one, 

 and, although one finds Limenitis sibylla in abundance, with Dryas 

 paphia, at Vitznau, on the borders of the beech and pine woods, little 

 above the lake level, and many other usually lowland species at this 

 and other spots on the shores of the lake, yet, so soon as one 

 commences to get above the lake, one meets with Erebias and other 

 lepidoptera, which we usually look upon as purely sub-alpine in 

 their distribution. True, the Lake of Lucerne is at an elevation of 

 1435ft., but this elevation counts for very little in some places on 

 the western and southern outskirts of the main Alpine chain. As 

 one climbs the St. Gothard Railway from Amsteg to Goeschenen 

 one is still more struck by the sub-alpine conditions, and by the time 

 that Goeschenen is reached one finds the fauna and flora of the 

 country almost alpine in its character, although the elevation is 

 only some 3640ft. These preliminary remarks to explain the facts 

 that strike one much on the walk from Goeschenen to Andermatt, 

 which reaches an elevation of 4738ft. 



Arriving at Goeschenen on the afternoon of July 29th, I set off 

 towards Andermatt, collecting on the slopes that sweep down to 

 the Reuss on the right-hand side of the lower part of the Schollenen 

 defile. It was a perfect afternoon, and insects were in great abundance 

 and one suspects it to be a magnificent hunting-ground. Erebia 

 goante and Pararge maera, specially dark males and females, just 

 emerged, occurred right in the village ; Erebia stygne, 1 leginning to go over, 

 and E. euryale, just emerging, were both abundant, and then, crossing 

 the river, an excursion on the slopes proved most productive. I 

 counted ten species of Crambids, and more than a dozen of Pyrales all 

 within the space of a few yards, the most attractive being Scopula 

 alpinalis, of which the hindwings were white with a grey marginal 

 border; and the centre of the forewings also with a whitish patch. I 

 once had specimens of this form sent me as coming from Scotland 

 but it is so long ago that the details have been lost. Here occurred 

 my first surprise. Brenthis selene was not uncommon, flying with 

 Coenonympha darwiniana and Brenthis pales; the place was exactly 

 similar to one in which C. darwiniana was abundant on the Cristallo 

 in the Dolomites, in 1895, a little stream trickling down the slopes 

 and making here and there a flat marshy spot that this species appears 

 to love. Of course, the surprise relates to B. pales; to find B. selene 

 and B. pales on the same ground seemed to me remarkable. 1 have 

 always looked on B. pales as a purely alpine species, rarely, if ever 

 occurring at a lower elevation than 5000ft., with 5500ft. to 7000ft. as 

 a much more natural limit. The imagines were jus! emerging, and 

 both sexes were larger than usual, and the females very dark; [near 

 the summit of the St. Gothard Pass a few days later, at some 6900ft. 

 altitude, the specimens were much smaller, and both forms, brown and 

 dark, of the female occurred.] Here also 1 captured Polyommatin 

 pheretes, a species that I had also considered particularly alpine. : - 



December 15th, 1907. 



