52 THE entomologist's record. 



Contributions to the fauna of tlie Dauphinc Alps. 



III. — The Lepidoptera of Bourg u'Aru. 



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



I spent Tuesday, August 18th, 1896, at Boug d'Aru, and collected 

 along the road leading from there to Bourg d'Oisans, as far as the 

 point at which the Val de Veneon joins the Romanche Valley. It 

 seems advisable to put on record the insects observed and captured in 

 this delightful spot, though a day's work must give but a poor contri- 

 bution to the fauna of this valley. The road is an incline, rising to 

 about 3,500 feet at Bourg d'Aru, and falling to about 2,400 at the 

 junction of the two valleys. High mountains covered -with glaciers 

 bound each side of the Val de Veneon, which, in places, is narrow, 

 rocky and precipitous. At other times it widens considerably, admit- 

 ting of a little cultivation on the slopes extending from the bed of 

 the river to the foot of the mountains. The sun disappears from the 

 valley by '6 p.m., so the day is necessarily a short one. Many insects 

 that I had found common at Bourg d'Oisans, and that offered no 

 variation from the specimens obtained there, were not captured, and 

 as I kept no record of these species, they are not mentioned. 



Papilionides. — Fam. Lyc.enid.e. — I'uUjommatus curydon. — Not 

 abundant, the males with pale undersides, the females not shot 

 with male coloration. P. &cZZ«;y/».s, — Not abundant. The males 

 taken were amongst swarms of P. dainon, drinking at the little puddles 

 in the roadway. /'. icarm. — Abundant, the ab. icariitus appeared also 

 to be rather common. P. eschcri. — This beautiful grand-looking 

 icurm-like species was scarce and going over ; a few females occurred. 

 P. astrarche. — Rather common, and not unlike British specimens ; the 

 orange spots round the margins of the fore- and hind-wings fairly well 

 developed. P. (hinion.—In swarms. There w^ere literally hundreds 

 at some of the little wayside pools made by the streams that broke 

 through the rocky precipices bounding the valley. Both sexes were 

 equally well represented ; the males, of course, are more conspicuous. 

 Fam. Papilionid.e. —Papilio jmdaliiius. — Very abundant, both in the 

 clover fields, on the flower heads, and also at the puddles in the road. 

 P. Diachaon. — Seen now and again all day, but not common. Those 

 netted Avere of large size, and mostly damaged. One freshly emerged 

 specimen, that still had slightly limp wings, had one tail entirely 

 absent (probably bitten oft" by a lizard). Fam. Parnassid.b. — Par- 

 nasninx apoZ^^— Scarce, but occurring all along the valley. Probably 

 more abundant in suitable spots at a higher elevation. I observed 

 this species fighting furiously with Sati/rns actaca. Fam. Pieeid.e. — 

 Pie lis napi. — Common. Specimens of both sexes very lightly marked on 

 the upper and under sides. Colias edusa. — Only about five specimens 

 observed. The species was exceedingly rare. Of those captured, 

 two were worn and two freshly emerged. Colias Injale. — Fairly 

 common, and within narrow limits variable. I captured only six 

 specimens. Four of these showed a tendency to the ab. intennedio. 

 Many specimens, however, that I observed at rest, were moderately 

 well marked on the margins. Goneptenjx rhamni. — Next to P. damon, 

 the commonest butterfly. I must have seen thousands in the course of 

 the day, but there was no time to overhaul them for aberrations. 

 Many of the females appeared more yellow than is usually the case, and 



