1879.] 5 



At Sils, there is an old GrermaB carpenter wlio has a fair knowledge 

 of the local species of Lepidoptera, and has collected a good deal in 

 former years. He had a good many Bombi/ces, IVocfuce, and GeometrcB 

 in his boxes ; some of which are rare and local, and, having been em- 

 ployed by Dr. Staudinger and others, had a very good notion of their 

 money value. 



In the evening, I went down the valley to St. Moritz, where 

 Hepialus humuU swarmed at dusk, and next day walked to Pontresina, 

 taking plenty of Colias Palceno in the open parts of the pine woods. 

 At Pontresina, I found that Herr Saratz, who has a line local collection 

 of birds well stuffed by himself, was out ; but his son showed me a 

 lot of young larvae of the rare and beautiful Chelonia Flavict, which he 

 had reared from the egg and hoped next year would produce moths. 

 This is another of the insects which is supposed only to appear every 

 second year. Professor Zeller, in his exhaustive account of the 

 Lepidoptera of the UjDper Albula district, where this fine species is 

 abundant, gives full details of what is known about it (see Stett. ent. 

 Zeit., 1877, 430). 



In the fine larch forest above Pontresina, I found Leucophasia 

 sinapis up to at least 6500 ft., which is higher than I had any reason 

 to believe it was found. In most of the Alpine valleys there are two 

 generations, but, in such a short summer as that of the Upper Enga- 

 dine, there can hardly be time enough for more than one. 



The next day I intended to go up the Val Bevers and over a pass 

 at its head to the Albula, but could find no one who knew the road. 

 The rocks of Yal Bevers, being calcareous, produce many interesting 

 plants, and the rare Lyccena Donzeli was found here fairly abundant 

 by Herr Rudolph Zeller, of Ziirich. As it was, I took the usual road 

 over the Albula Pass, which is a stony barren wilderness, reminding 

 one of the hills of Jura, or some of the Eoss-shire mountains. 



At a few hundred feet below the summit of the pass, on the north 

 side, is an unpretending though fairly comfortable little inn, called the 

 " Weissenstein," which, on account of the numerous rare plants and 

 insects found in the neighbourhood, is a favourite station for naturalists. 

 Here Professor Zeller made his head-quarters, and here may usually 

 be found some collectors, from Germany or Switzerland, in search of 

 Chelonia Flavia, Arctia Quenseli, or some of the other rarities of the 

 neighbourhood. 



Though I was only able to stay one night at the " "Weissenstein," 

 I was successful in getting a good series of the rather rare Erehia 

 glacialis, which was plentiful on the steep slopes of loose stones 



