214 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



did so, for the sky gradually clouded over, and in the early after- 

 noon the sun was hidden for the day. The best, and jn-obably 

 the only good collecting ground at Eonda, is to be found on the 

 right bank of the Guadalevin, some mile and a half below the 

 town, immediately where the river leaves the meadows and 

 enters a gorge ; this ground extends down the bank of the river 

 a mile or more, and is especially good on the top of the cliffs 

 just before the river enters the gorge ; it is best reached by 

 walking along the top of the cliffs, past the. Hotel ' Reina 

 Victoria,' and the new cemetery. On this spot butterflies were 

 very numerous, the most abundant species being easily the very 

 local Anthocharis tagis, which of course in its type form is in 

 Europe peculiar to Southern Spain. A. tagis has much the 

 habits and flight of the Provence form of the species, var. helleziria, 

 like it floating slowly along the edge and upper portions of the 

 precipices it haunts, though one meets with it more sparingly on 

 the lower slopes and down by the river. It is said by Lang and 

 Kane to feed upon Iberis pinuata ; I do not know this plant, but 

 an Ihcris, white, about six inches in height, and not very far 

 from the old garden candytuft, was growing, wherever I saw the 

 butterfly at Ronda and elsewhere. The female settled upon it 

 repeatedly, but though searching carefully I could not find any 

 ova ; I did, however, find a larva, which fed up and pupated ; 

 this larva and pupa closely resembled the description of A. tagis 

 given in Lang, though it might have been A. helemia. Unfortu- 

 nately it has since died, so the question of its identity will not be 

 solved. I have, however, little doubt but that this Ihcris is the 

 food-plant of A. tagis in Spain; the specimens captured, some 

 thirty in number, were in very good condition. With this 

 species flew, in less numbers, another Andalusian speciality, 

 A. helemia, the only typical specimens I saw in Spain, and its 

 var. glance. I think A. helemia is the swiftest winged butterfly 

 I have ever viewed flying; those who have seen A. helia on the 

 wing will appreciate what I mean when I say that in my judg- 

 ment A. helemia could give the other species twenty yards in a 

 hundred ; it is of course quite useless to attempt to run it down, 

 but this butterfly becomes an easy victim once its habits are 

 known. Like other Diurni, it has a weakness for flying along 

 the edge of a ridge, or, better still, round and round a knoll ; one 

 can stand there and intercept it in flight quite comfortably, and 

 one may strike again and again without in the least alarming it. 

 Thais riimina was common, but most of the specimens were in 

 bad condition ; I saw but missed a fine deep yellow form, which 

 could not be far from ab. canteneri, and was certainly the best 

 form I saw in Andalusia. Most of the T. rumina one sees in 

 collections have the ground colour of the wings very little, if at 

 all, more richly coloured than those of the French form var. 

 medesiaste, and very few of them are of so strong a yellow tint as 



