1892.] 59 



went to a station about 15 miles beyond Guildford, called Darlington, 

 but as I went with a large party I could not get much collecting, 

 though I did manage to scramble up a few things. The " scrub " be- 

 tween Fremantle and Perth is very interesting — a fine open growth of 

 large Eucalyptus trees, beneath which is a wilderness of beautiful 

 flowering shrubs, all strange to me, Leguminosce, Banksias, and Com- 

 positfB, perhaps predominating ; the soil is everywhere clean, dry, and 

 sandy, with limestone cropping out in places. During our stay 

 at Fremantle I have collected at least 200 species of Coleoptera, 

 though I have missed most of the nice Buprestidce, &c., which 

 appear to be so common here as to have local names, such as 

 " anchor beetle," &c. ; of these, however, I have received some spe- 

 cimens from residents who have kept them as curios. Among 

 them I have several of a grand ochreous-brown Stigmodera, nearly 2\ 

 inches long, but this last comes from Greraldton, further up the coast. 

 Weevils appear to predominate, there being several most curious 

 knobbed and warted terrestrial kinds, having the habits of Brachycerus, 

 though not related to that genus I think ; two or three of these bear 

 a most curious resemblance to species of Sepidium ; many others of 

 singular form and pretty colours are got by brushing the bushes, with 

 small Biopresfidcd, Cryptocephali, &c. Heteromera — some nice forms, 

 mostly of no great size, but including three species of Helwus, one of 

 which is a grand fellow, with long hairs on the disc of the elytra ; this 

 last appears rare. Garabidce are pretty numerous, but for the most 

 part rather obscure looking, though there is a fine black Scaritid 

 found rarely under logs ; a few nice Longicorns, Chrysomelidcd, 

 chafers, &c. I found only one ant's nest beetle, a small species of the 

 remarkable genus Articerus. Plenty of nice looking Hemiptera, Hy- 

 menoptera, Dipfera, &c., but apparently not many butterflies. The 

 commonest is a Heteronympha {Bliilerope ?), which looks exactly like 

 our Bararge Megcera on the wing ; the larger H. Merope is not common, 

 but Byrameis cardui is plentiful, and I have also taken P. Itea ; several 

 very pretty little blues, and one very large and fine species of the 

 curious Australian genus Ogyris in plenty, but rather worn. I have 

 also taken a nice series of an anomalous " skipper," Synemon sp. Our 

 British Seliothis armiger is not rare here. 



"We leave on the 3rd for Hobart direct, but will hardly, I think, 

 get there before Christmas. 



Fremantle, Western Australia : 



December 1st, 1890. 



G 2 



