1902. j 191 



number and pertinacity, though fortunately not in virulence, sur- 

 passed everything of the kind 1 have seen in all my wanderings in the 

 Tropics or elsewhere. On some days it was quite out of the question 

 to approach a pool of water, or stand still in a shady place ; and even 

 on the open roads, in the full glare of the sunshine, one's clothes were 

 often absolutely black with the myriads of these bloodthirsty little 

 wretches, so that 1 was, in self-defence, compelled to carry a supply 

 of camphorated carbolic acid, for frequent application to my face and 

 hands. The nocturnal mosquitoes, though luckily not as numerous, 

 were much more venomous than these day-biters, which after attaining 

 a maximum in July, rapidly decreased in numbers, and were almost 

 all gone in September. Ants, too, were a great nuisance, though less 

 aggressive than the mosquitoes, as they swarmed under every log and 

 stone to the exclusion of more desirable insects, and some of the 

 smaller species bit and stung very sharply. Another insect pest, 

 which I was rather surprised to meet with here, was a species very 

 like our well-known Forest-fly, Hippobosca equina. In the New 

 Hebrides, mosquitoes and flies, though by no means absent, could not 

 be regarded as at all numerous or troublesome while we were there. 



With these exceptions, insects were by no means abundant at 

 Noumea, and at no time was I able to get away for any distance into 

 the country. The dry open hillsides were especially unproductive, 

 and almost the only good piece of collecting-ground which I could 

 find was at " Anse Vata," on the coast about three miles away from 

 the town. Here a few acres of level land, covered with apparently 

 indigenous and almost undisturbed " bush," produced a good many 

 interesting insects, including a fair number of butterflies. Of these 

 the most important, and certainly the most beautiful, was the fine 

 blue Papilio Montrouzieri, Bdv., which was occasionally seen flying 

 even in the streets of Noumea ; and at Anse Vata, especially in Sep- 

 tember, it was not at all uncommon. This insect, like its larger 

 relative, the P. Ulysses of Amboyna, is shy and wary, and as it 

 usually flies rather high, is by no means easy to catch. I found the 

 best way to secure the insect was to get out to its head-quarters not 

 later than 8 a.m., at which time it might sometimes be easily approached, 

 when feeding at the Lantana flowers ; and later on in the day, to sit 

 down under the shadiest tree I could find, ready to jump up directly 

 one came sailing down the path, But the brilliant and imposing 

 appearance of P. Montrouzieri does not at all conduce to accurate 

 practice with the net, and when caught, a large proportion of the 

 specimens were found to be worn and broken. A good deal of time 



