42 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Macedonia, "while of eight species which were very common in 

 Macedonia four are rare and one absent from Britain. 



British preponderance in Ni/mplialidce is largely accounted 

 for by the scarcity of the common stinging-nettle, as the 

 absence of A. urticcB proves, while in the genus Argynnis — 

 notoriously local insects — there appears to be a total difi'erence 

 in the species of those I found in Macedonia, not one being 

 known (except laihonia very rarely) in Britain. 



In the SatyridcB again there is a great disparity, as out of 

 eleven British species I only found three in Macedonia, while 

 three species found there are not known in Britain. 



The Lyccenidce are such local insects that it is not feasible to 

 draw a comparison, though I found all the universally distributed 

 species common enough in Macedonia. In the HcspermUt there 

 is wide disparity, only two S})ecies being common in both 

 countries, the most abundant in each being absent in the 

 other. 



With regard to varieties, four of our British species appear 

 to differ markedly in Macedonia, these being P. niegcera, C. 

 jMinphilus, C. phUeas, A. medon {astrarche) and A. flava 

 {tJtaumas). 



Another feature I noticed was the occurrence of extremely 

 dwarf forms of several species, similar to those produced among 

 bred specimens from time to time, which is, I believe, generally 

 attributed to malnutrition of the larvae by unsuitable or inade- 

 quate food, and it is possibly the case that in such a dry climate 

 a certain number of larvre may be obliged to subsist on food of 

 less succulence than ordinary. 



IphicUdes podalirius. — Although never what one would call 

 abundant, this fine butterfly was generally distributed, and I 

 could usually count on seeing one or more individuals in certain 

 suitable places. Unlike macJiaon, which often haunted the driest 

 hillsides, it was seldom found far from water, and was usually 

 confined to wooded ravines where the stream never dried 

 entirely. Its flight is decidedly more lofty and sailing than that 

 of machaon and it is more difficult to capture. One day I was 

 sitting among the ruins of a house overgrown with weeds 

 watching a pair of these insects sailing round and I happened 

 to toss away a little ball of paper. One of the butterflies 

 immediately swooped down after it. I repeated the action, not 

 only then but on several subsequent occasions, and almost 

 invariably padalirius would dash after the falling object. 



I several times saw the females depositing on pear trees, but 

 too high up to enable me to secure the ova. My specimens 

 conform fairly closely to type, except one, which has the pale 

 line that breaks the basal stripe exceptionally wide and the 

 inner margin of the hind wings is not dusted with black. 



(To be continued.) 



