THE EARLIER STAGES OF COLIAS HECLA. 83 
C. hecla described by Staudinger, during my stay there in 1912, 
and the only leguminous plant I could find in the district was 
the Astragalus alpinus of Linné, which the ‘ Index Kewensis ’ 
states is the Phaca astragalina of De Candolle, and which grew 
freely, locally. 
Later on, at Laxelv, in the Porsanger Fjord, as noted in 
‘Entomologist,’ xlv. p. 339, I found C. hecla in great numbers, 
flying over flat rough meadows and fields in which A. alpinus 
grew abundantly ; this plant is undoubtedly its food-plant there, 
and almost certainly, for the above reasons, at Bossekop also. 
I do not, of course, know in how many localities in Lapland 
—a great part of which is entirely unexplored—C. hecla is found, 
and if it is always associated with A. alpinus, but it is certainly 
a very local species, found only in the above-mentioned localities 
of those I have explored, although it is stated to occur also on the 
north side of the Tornea Traske in Swedish Lapland. In all of 
these localities A. alpinus is an abundant plant; but it is so 
local that I do not recollect ever seeing a specimen elsewhere, 
though I have explored a great many miles of suitable country 
in Arctic Scandinavia. 
The only other leguminous plant I could find in the Por- 
sanger Fjord was what I think was a species of Vicia, which in 
the latter part of July had beautiful trusses of mauve flowers, 
and which grew about one foot high, and was plentiful along the 
shores of the Fjord at Kistrand. This plant the larve of 
C. hecla refused to feed upon. They also refused white and red 
clover, which I offered to them on my journey home, and which 
grew freely at Tromso and at various places touched at south of 
that town. 
It seems probable that the larve of the two exclusively Arctic 
species of Colias occurring in Kurope—C. hecla and C. werdandi 
—feed exclusively in nature on A. alpinus. It should, however, 
be noted that C. hecla does not occur on the south side of the 
Tornea Traske, where A. alpinus is an abundant plant, and 
where C. werdandi flies in great numbers. 
The ova of C. hecla were to be found plentifully at Laxelv at 
the time of my visit, July 11th to July 16th, 1912, almost every 
individual food-plant éxamined having some attached to it; they 
are deposited singly. 
The ova is of the usual Colias type, upright, the vertical 
and horizontal diameters are 1°25 mm. and 0°65 mm. respec- 
tively. It has vertical ribs, about twenty-six in number; the 
distance they are apart is ‘(05 mm.; numerous very shallow 
transverse ribs connect the vertical ribs. The diameter of the 
apex of the ovais‘15 mm. The micropylar area consists of a 
number of shallow cells; it is not noticeably depressed. The 
surface of the ova is shining and opalescent. The larva 
emerges from the side. 
