THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



No. 34.] NOVEMBER, MDCCCLXVI. [Price 6d. 



A few Remarks on Mr. BircJinWn List of Irish Lepidoptera. 

 By the Rev. J. Gkeene, M.A. 



As the compiler of the original List of Irish IVIacro- 

 Lepidoptera, I have read with great interest that supplied by 

 u)y friend Mr. Birchall to the ' Entomologist's Monthly 

 Magazine.' I have been struck with surprise and admiration 

 at the vast number of additions made to that list during the 

 course of a little more than ten years. These additions, with 

 inconsiderable — inconsiderable, that is, as regards numbers — 

 exceptions, are almost entirely due to Mr. Birchall's own un- 

 flagging perseverance and untiring ardour. True he has 

 certainly had the advantage of being almost the only Ento- 

 mologist who has ever attempted anything like a systeinatic 

 and consecutive investigation of the Lepidoptera of Ireland ; 

 but this was neither his " fault" nor his " misfortune." I do 

 not know a single resident collector, deserving the name, in 

 Ireland, except the Rev. J. B.ristowe. A few Englishmen, as 

 Messrs. Barrett, Shield, Wallace and others, have occasion- 

 ally made a hasty raid into the country, and spoken favour- 

 ably of it. I myself, though an Irishman, have not had more 

 than two or three opportunities of collecting there, and then 

 only for a week or two at a time. Considering, farther, that 

 Mr. Birchall's explorations -extended over portions only of 

 three counties, Dublin, Galway and Kerry, I consider the 

 results wonderful, and that to him is mainly due the credit of 

 producing a list of which Ireland has no reason to be 

 ashamed. In examining his list so far as it has been pub- 

 lished, it has occurred to me to make a few observations 

 upon it, and to ask one or two questions. In his prefatory 

 remarks Mr. Birchall refers to my old list, observing very 

 justly that he is unwilling to reject from it any species as 

 indigenous which could be retained with any show of reason. 

 This resolution he has carried out with praiseworthy 



VOL. III. M 



