2 A [January, 



Happily our botanical collectings were far more successful. 

 Visiting the well-known habitat among rough broken limestone debris 

 near the road from Balta Sound to Haroldswick, we came across the 

 two great, I should rather say small, Shetland rarities, Cerastium arc- 

 ticum, Lange, var. JEdmondstonii, Beeby, and Arenaria norvegica, Grunn., 

 associated with Arahis petrcsa, Lam., all in good quantity, whilst among 

 the rocks on the east end of the Muckle Heog Cairns were small 

 plants of Asplenium viride, Huds., A. adiantum-nigrum, Linn., Lastrcea 

 Jilix-mas, Presl., and Polypodium vulgare, Linn., and, close to the 

 summit, Botrychium lunaria, Sw., ferns as a rule being very rare in 

 Shetland. Flying round the cairn on the summit were two or three 

 Vanessa cardui, one of which I captured. It will serve as a voucher 

 for the locality, though it had seen better days. 



Descending the S.W. slope of the hill we came to another locality 

 for both the Cerastium and Arenaria, about two-thirds of a mile from 

 the original station, and on a subsequent day, whilst driving to Uyea 

 Sound, on the S. side of the island, I found a third habitat for both 

 these plants, at least three miles distant from the others, on the E. 

 side of the road. 



One day was given up to exploring the Hill of Haroldswick, and 

 although no Lepidoptera were taken nor specially rare plants met with, 

 the magnificent distant views, grand cliff scenery, and the profusion 

 and variety of the birds amply rewarded us. To the S., about forty- 

 five miles distant, rose the precipitous face of " The Noss," and away 

 to the W.S.W., the remarkable outline of Foula, with its steep escarp- 

 ments, was just discernible on the horizon, whilst to the E., about two 

 miles from land, was a school of whales spouting and occasionally 

 disporting themselves so as to exhibit a portion of their backs. They 

 had been accompanying the herring boats for several days, and lack 

 of time alone prevented our going out with the fleet for a night's 

 fishing to see them at closer quarters. 



On our return to Haroldswick, whilst waiting for our trap, we 

 set to work to gather the heads of Silene maritima, With., and soon 

 had enough to fill a small sack, the plant being very abundant among 

 stones on the beach. We did not stop to examine whether they con- 

 tained larvae, but only gathered as fast as we could, with the result 

 that I now have eleven healthy pupae of Dianthcecia nana {conspersa), 

 and probably a good supply of Eupithecia venosata. 



The same calm brilliant weather in which we had arrived accom- 

 panied our homeward journey. A day's excursion to Scalloway 

 produced no Lepidoptera, nor did a subsequent walk across the island 



