206 THE entomologist's record. 



Five days at Macugnaga. 



By G. T. BETHUNE-BAKEE, F.L.S., F.Z.S., F.E.S. 



After leaving Berisal, I spent a couple of days at Baveno so as 

 to enable me just to take a glimpse of lovely Lake Maggiore. The 

 first day, August 2nd, was spent on the lake itself, basking in the sun- 

 light and enjoying to the full the three " Isolas," Bella, Madre, and 

 Superiore, pearls in a setting of sapphire, utterly lovely, making the 

 restless northerner rather long to sit and dream. And as he dreams, 

 one song alone, one scene, may be, forces its way before him — nay, 

 force is not needed here — a scene out of Tennyson's Pn'nce.<<s glides 

 along to view, and you hear the distant melody " Swallow, swallow, 

 flying, flying South." As you dream you wonder, is it true — amidst 

 scenes so soft, so lovely, so entrancing — 



" That bright, and fierce, and fickle is the South 

 And dark, and true, and tender is the North." 



Of course the truth of the latter is not doubted, but the former, is 

 it really so in a land so blessed by Nature's Lord ? 



We left the query without an answer, the beauty of our surroundings 

 carrying our thoughts elsewhere. The next day was spent up Monte 

 Mottarone, and I shall not soon forget the temperature and the 

 atmosphere of the woods that cover the lower part of the upward path 

 — -thunder in the air — oh ! for a breeze, never did the ancient mariner 

 long for a breeze more than I did then, and just as I got to the 

 " Albergo " at the top and had by no means satisfied myself with the 

 view, the storm broke. Hail and torrents of rain ; there would be no 

 insects for me on my way down as there were none on my 

 way up, scarcely even were the bees able to fly in the intense 

 heat, and it was only an occasional Erebia aethiops and Aphantopua 

 Injperanthm that were literally picked up out of their resting places 

 that showed themselves at all. I was up betimes the next morning 

 for I had the long and lovely valley of the Anzasca to ascend 

 ere my desired haven (Macugnaga) was reached. Again insects 

 were very few and far between, partly due no doubt to the 

 fact that searching was impracticable owing to the " time limit " 

 whilst the day was dull and a strong wind was blowing, but all the 

 same the views were entrancing, so much so that it was 10 o'clock 

 p.m., ere I arrived at the Hotel Monte Eosa, where I had engaged a 

 room. August 5th was a quiet day, first I wandered down the valley 

 to the lowest village, and then after lunch up the valley to take my 

 bearings. Down the valley in the brilliant sun Heodes vir/iaiireae 

 gleamed like jewels as they flitted in abundance from flower to flower, 

 the females evidently just beginning to come along. Agriades coridon 

 was very abundant in the male sex, only one female being netted, in 

 colour they were certainly more than a mere tone bluer than the Swiss 

 specimens I had been previously taking, there were moreover one or two 

 pretty forms, one with very narrow dark margins, and another with 

 unusually broad margins, in which in both wings were a row of pale 

 spots that in the hindwing extending right up to the costa. Plebeiits 

 arf/nn and P. an/i/rot/nouio^i raced neck and neck which should be the 

 commoner. Parnassins apollo was common — fine darkish specimens, 

 Sesin stellatanDii poising over the nectar of the flowers Avas another 

 common sight, occasionally its rapid flash from flower to flower being 

 quite too quick and sudden for the eye to follow. Here also a single 



