A CoNTRIBHTION TO THE RNTOMOLOCY OF IRKLAND. -S 



and I believe absolutely none of Hemiptera or Homoptera. 

 One might suppose from its geographical position, the mild- 

 ness of the climate, the very considerable extent of area, and 

 the abundance of wild country, where everything natural is 

 not improved off the face of the earth by bricks and mortar or 

 cultivation, that the number of species would be great; and 

 that, especially on the west coast open to the Atlantic, the 

 collector might hope to gratify his ambition for new species. 

 There appears, however, to be a general consent that this is 

 not the case. I am not acquainted with many details from 

 purely Irish entomologists; but the Englishmen who have 

 worked in Ireland have almost invariably been disappointed, 

 and have pronounced the country barren as to new or rare 

 Coleoptera from Belfast to Killarney, and from Dublin to 

 Connemara. Such was the report of Professor Babington, 

 long ago, and recently of Messrs. VVollaston, S. Stevens, 

 Chaujpion, &c. They did not attack the Hemiptera or 

 Homoptera. I am, however, strongly inclined to think that 

 a good deal of this depends on the paucity of the observers, 

 the short time devoted to the excursions, and the limited 

 localities examined. 1 suspect that if Ireland were to be 

 worked as thoroughly as the sister country, it would not be 

 found so wofully deficient. 



On two occasions I have spent about a fortnight in the 

 month of August with some friends in the neighbourhood of 

 Waterford, at a village called Rathkurby, from whence I 

 made excursions to the Cuuimeragh Hills, Thomas Town, 

 the banks of the Suir, Tramore on the coast, &c. ; and on one 

 of these visits, more especially, I amused myself with taking 

 type specimens of every species of coleopterous and 

 hemipterous insect I could find, whether common or rare; 

 and the result is the accompanying list of three hundred and 

 thirty-five species of Coleoptera, and sixty-four oi Hemiptera; 

 which I think is not to be despised, as the produce not of a 

 set entomological expedition, but of the leisure hours of 

 a visit to friends. I have supplemented the list by a few 

 additional insects, which I afterwards obtained on a visit to 

 Dublin, where, however, I was scarcely able to collect at all, 

 though I did try the Hill of Howth, the Dublin hills, the 

 Sugar Loaf, and got as far as Ovoca. Tliese I have distin- 

 guished by the affix of (D). The list is regularly arranged 

 according to Dr. Sharp's catalogue. It will be seen that of 

 new species I got none, and that the rare species were not 

 very many ; but yet not so much amiss considering the 



