302 THE entomologist's kecoed. 



familiar face of Philip Adamovich Zaitseff, former editor of the Henic 

 ntsse (V Entnnidhxiie, whose acquaintance I had made at the Jubilee of 

 the Russian Entomological Society, and renewed at the Congress at 

 Brussels. He was accompanied by Dr. R. Schmidt, the erudite Deputy 

 Director of the Caucasus Museum, a genial soul, whose delight it was 

 to help the traveller and introduce him to the wonders of Titlis. 



{To he continued.) 



Libythea celtis. Eggs and Oviposition {With two plateK). 



By T. A. CHAPMAN, M.D., F.E.S, 



Libyt/n'o eelti'i is nowhere very common on the Riviera, though I 

 have seen and taken it in a number of places. Celtis trees are not 

 abundant, and are usually of large size, such as some in the market 

 place of Mouans Sartoux, near Cannes. They are not, therefore, very 

 accessible, and so it resulted that I never succeeded in obtaining eggs, 

 and was not less fortunate than various other collectors whose ambi- 

 tions in this matter were much like my own. In 1909, however, I 

 visited Amelie-les-Bains. ( 'dtis aiistralis is not very abundant here, but 

 what there are are often young trees and shrubby growth, the region is 

 also one in which celtis is actually grown commercially in various 

 places. Though L. <rltis was in no great numbers one could always 

 count on meeting with them. I took the first specimen on April 7th, 

 just after my arrival, and others afterwards. The trees were then 

 showing traces of flowers and of leaves about a quarter of an inch long. 



I kept some females of L. cdtis on some celtis twigs, but no eggs 

 were laid until a fresh spray of celtis, given them on the 3 6th, afforded 

 a number of eggs on the following day. Further experiments and a 

 close enquiry into the facts seemed to explain why eggs were now laid 

 and none previously. 



I may note by the way that in breaking into leaf in the spring 

 Celt in australis displays very markedly a peculiarity that is not uncom- 

 mon in other plants, but rarely so pronounced. A celtis tree may 

 often be seen in April in which some branches seem well in leaf, whilst 

 others are still bare as in winter, and it is found that the green branches 

 are those that bear flowers, the bare ones are not going to do so. The 

 peculiarity is of course largely due to this appearance of flowers all 

 over certain branches with none on others. The young shoots bearing 

 flowers may be several inches long before the others have appreciably 

 moved. L. celtis will not lay until there is some actual spring growth, 

 and even then it exercises what are obviously very wise precautions. 



]\Iy notes say that on April 18th the flowering sprays are two to 

 four inches long, with four or five leaves of an inch to a inch and a 

 half long, whilst the non-Howering buds are but half an inch long, 

 showing a little green l)ut no leaves. The trees have a curious appear- 

 ance, often a whole bush or tree appears covered with leaves, whilst 

 another looks quite bare and wintry ; a considerable proportion have 

 certain sprays and branches well in leaf, whilst the rest of the tree 

 looks dead (by comparison). 



The flowering buds throw out male flowers (catkins ?) close to 

 their base, the central shoot carrying female flowers in the axils of the 

 first four or five or more leaves. Already (iHth) the berries are nearly 

 as large as a small grain of wheat, and the faded male flowers, with 



