NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS. 45 



Some Notes on the Season 1919. — The last season has in my 

 experience been on the whole unsatisfactory. Some species, especially 

 among butterflies, appeared in abundance, while otliers seemed to be 

 entirely absent. In the spring I was struck by the great profusion 

 of Pier in najn, while the allied species P. rapce. was scarcely seen. 

 I wondered whether that would be repeated in the summer brood. 

 Here, however, I found that while the first small " Whites " to appear 

 were P. napi, their place was soon taken by P. rapa, and after that 

 I did not see another specimen of the former species. Gelastrina 

 argiolus, which usually occurs plentifully in my own garden, was 

 very scarce in the spring, while only an occasional specimen was 

 seen of the second brood. In July in the New Forest all butterflies 

 were exceedingly abundant. I don't think I have ever seen more 

 Dryas paphia, Argynnis cydippe or Limenitis sibylla. The var. 

 valezina of D. paphia occurred freely. I saw two very fine varieties 

 of the ordinary form, one a magnificent suffused specimen, just taken 

 by other collectors, while a large number of black forms of L. sibylla 

 were also taken. All the other July species of butterflies were 

 equally abundant. A little later in the month I was in Lincolnshire, 

 where the only butterfly that occurred in any numbers was Aphantopas 

 hypcranthus. In a particular wood I worked there was a great 

 tendency towards reduction in the size of the wing-spots. I took no 

 less than six specimens of var. arete. In the New Forest, though I 

 examined large numbers, there was no tendency to variation. I found 

 that earlier in the season Cyclopides palamon had occurred in pro- 

 fusion. So far as my experience went the a^itumn butterflies failed 

 to put in an appearance. Though at the beginning of August in 

 Lincolnshire Aglais urticcs. appeared fairly freely, I did not see a single 

 specimen after my return home, thereby bearing out the experience 

 of Mr. Rowland-Brown, as recorded in the December ' Entomologist.' 

 It was the same with Pyrauieis atalanta and Vanessa io. In this 

 locality they were entirely absent. Another common butterfly which 

 I did not come across till October was Chrysophaniis phlceas, though 

 I had been specially on the look-out for it. I wonder whether my 

 experience of the scarcity of some of our common butterflies has been 

 that of others. With regard to night work the results were most 

 disappointing. While most day-flying moths were in their usual 

 numbers, sugar absolutely failed to attract Nocfeuae. On the downs 

 here a few common species were taken early in the summer, but in 

 the New Forest night after night in July did not produce a single 

 moth, nor were Nocture found by any other means. A little later, in 

 Lincolnshire, things improved slightly, but some nights there was 

 scarcely a moth to be seen. The best things in a fortnight's sugaring 

 were one Apainca connexa and two Cosmia paleacca. I had another 

 turn at sugar in September, in the New Forest, when I hoped the 

 tide of failure would have turned. But no ! the situation was the 

 same — only one AmpJiipyra pyraviidea and one Catocala sjwnsa. 

 September 16th was surely a very late date for this species. Con- 

 sidering the date it was in very fair condition. The only really good 

 night I had at sugar, so far as numbers are concerned, was on the 

 downs here at the end of x\ugust, but only common species were 

 represented. But it was not only sugar that was so remunerative ; 



