222 [March. 



Entomological Collecting on a voyage in the Pacific (contimted from page 96^. — 

 We arrived in Papetoai Bay (Eimeo) on the morning of May 9th, and on the 

 following day we steamed over to Tahiti and anchored in Papiete Harbour. Eight 

 days were spent here, in coaling ship and giving leave to the crew, and I was able 

 to make two excursions to the mountains, besides sundry shorter walks about 

 Papiete. On one occasion, I reached the liill-fort of Fautaua (famous in the history 

 of Tahiti, as the spot where the natives made their last stand against the French in 

 1845), which is most picturesquely situated at a height of 2500 feet above the sea. 

 Close by is the principal waterfall in the island, a considerable stream falling over 

 a grand precipice of columnar lava 700 feet high, the surrounding scenery being of 

 the most magnificent description. No new butterflies turned up, but both at Eimeo 

 and Tahiti, I got several moths wliich I had not previously taken. Specimens of 

 Choerocampa Erotus and Sphinx convolvidi, usually much rubbed, were occasionally 

 brought to me, and the larva of the latter hawk-moth again occurred, on several 

 species of Convolvulus. A very delicate-looking green Choerocampa larva, found not 

 rarely on the Taro, the " Nono " {Blorinda eitrifolia, a common wild fruit) and 

 especially on the " Ape " {Arum costatum, a gigantic species with an esculent root) 

 produced, to my surprise, our rare British C. Celerio, and I reared a beautiful 

 series : the oblique stripe on the fore-wings being much more silvery than in any 

 examples I have seen in English collections. The larva of Macroglossa sp. also 

 occurred on the " Nono : " it is very similar in appearance to that of our own 

 humming-bird moth. Several Oeometrce, apparently related to Boarmia, &c., 

 occurred sparingly in the forest, and two very interesting moths were obtained in 

 plenty, by beating the foliage of the Hibiscus tiliaceus. One (of which I had 

 previously found a single specimen in Nuka Hiva) is a satiny-white insect, in size, 

 make, and general aspect almost a fac-simile of Liparis salicis : and not until I had 

 reared it from a long green " half-looper " caterpillar, did I find ovit that it is really 

 a Quadrifid Kociua. The other is a very pretty delicate green moth, reminding one 

 strongly of Oeometra smaragdaria : this I bred from a curious long thin reddish- 

 green larva, very closely imitating, the midrib of the guava leaf on which it feeds. 

 A Heliothis (I think S. assulta, On.) which occurred rarely in weedy places, was 

 somewhat like a pale S. viarginata : I found the remains of Ophideres sp. near the 

 fort of Fautaua, where a brilliant little Pyralid, black, with large fiery-red spots, 

 was common, flying among ferns in the sunshine. 



On May 19th we finally left Tahiti, and reached Pitcairn Island early on the 

 morning of June Ist. The aspect of this famous little island (which is only two and 

 a quarter miles long, by less than one mile wide) is extremely picturesque and 

 striking. Steep, rugged hills, covered with forest in most parts, and attaining an 

 elevation of 1000 feet, terminate in an iron-bound coast of black trachytic rock, on 

 which a tremendous surf is always breaking, and, to all appearance, landing in a 

 boat is nowhere possible. The ship was, however, soon boai-ded by some of the 

 islanders in a fine whale-boat, in which several of the officers, including myself, 

 shortly afterwards went on shore. The boat, managed with wonderful dexterity, 

 was pulled through the furious breakers without shipping a pint of water, and was 

 hauled up on a very small strip of sandy beach, almost the only landing-place in 

 the island. The people welcomed us heartily, and were evidently greatly pleased to 

 sec us, the visit of a British man-of-war being one of the principal events in their 



