Sept., 1922.] Watson : Local Lepidoptera. 131 



MISCELLANEOUS NOTES AND RECORDS OF LOCAL 



LEPIDOPTERA, AND DESCRIPTION OF TWO 



NEW ABERRATIONS. 



By Frank E. Watson^ 

 New York, N. Y. 



Butterfly Collecting in the Vicinity of New York City for 

 THE Season of 1920. 



The exceedingly poor butterfly collecting in the vicinity of New 

 York City this past season may perhaps be laid to the abnormal 

 weather conditions, particularly to the greatly reduced amount of 

 spring-like weather through March, April and May. Following a 

 long cold winter, March was warm and spring-like from the middle 

 to the end of the month. It also had a remarkable number of clear 

 days for that month in this vicinity. April gave us just five nice 

 warm spring-like days. May was better with nineteen warm days, 

 and being steadily warm after the 14th. The weather, during June, 

 was normal. July and August were exceedingly hot, humid and 

 rainy. When not actually raining it was damp and cloudy with rain 

 threatening, so that there were few sunny days during these two 

 months. 



Cornns mass, a European Dogwood, produced its first flowers on 

 April 1st in St. Nicholas Park, New York City. The same shrubs 

 last year flowered for the first time on March 18, i.e., two weeks 

 earlier. With the butterflies, at any rate, the season has apparently 

 been about two weeks late, not becoming normal until about August ist. 



In Van Cortlandt Park, New York City, commencing with August 

 I and lasting through the month and to about September 7, about 

 sixteen of our commonest butterflies were very abundant and many 

 of the less common species were observed. Prior to August ist 

 there was almost no collecting, while after September 7 the collect- 

 ing became very poor again. 



At Lake Mashipacong, Sussex Co., N. J., July 3 to 5, Mr. G. C 

 Hall and the writer enjoyed the hospitality of Mr. and Mrs. C. L. 

 Robinson. Thirty-one species and four varieties were observed on 

 the three days, among which were Melitcca harrisi Scudder, quite 



