THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Vol. XIV.] MAY, 1881. [No. 216. 



NOTES ON THE LEPIDOPTERA-RHOPALOCERA OF 

 HUDSON'S BAY. 



By J. Jenner Weir, F.L.S., F.Z.S. 



Mr. Walton Haydon, a surgeon in the service of the 

 Hudson's Bay Company, has been so kind as to send me the 

 results of two years' entomological collecting in this very dreary 

 region. 



Mr. Haydon is stationed at Moose Factory, on an island at 

 the south-western side of St. James' Bay, the most southern arm 

 of Hudson's Bay, situated in long. 80° 56', lat. 50° 20', thus being 

 about 3000 miles due west of London. The trees of the district 

 are chiefly pine, birch, and willow, with currant and gooseberr}^ 

 bushes ; the country is marshy. The winter is ver^' long, lasting 

 seven months, during five of which the thermometer does not rise 

 above freezing, and sometimes sinking to -52° F. Mr. Haydon has 

 sent me the observed mean temperature for eleven months of the 

 year, according to Fahrenheit, viz. : January — 4° 2' ; February 

 - 6° 6'; March + 11° 8'; April + 24° 7'; May + 40° 6'; June 

 + 51° 0'; July + 60° 3'; August + 58° 5'; October + 38° 0'; 

 November + 25° 0' ; December + 7° 8'. It will be seen that, 

 although Moose is within a few minutes in the same latitude as 

 London, the climate is very much colder, the winter longer, and 

 the summer shorter. 



Ordinary vegetables do not come to perfection ; for instance, 

 Mr. Haydon informs me that his peas grew to the height of ten 

 feet, but produced no pods ; and on July 10th, 1880, the potatoes 

 were but four inches above the ground. At least thirty Indians 

 had died of starvation during the winter of 1879-80. 



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