on the Bionomics of Southern Nigerian Insects. 431 
That is where the great coalfield now being worked by the 
Government is located. The railway runs from Port Har- 
court to Enugu, the present rail-head. Port Harcourt is 
at the head of the Bonny River and is practically the same 
as Okrika, which you will see on the old maps. I went to 
Enugu by rail, then took the road to Awka, which meets 
the Udi-Awka road at Oji River crossing. This involves a 
26-mile trek in one day. The next day’s trek took me to 
Awka, where I remained a day or two and was then hastily 
recalled back here to take over from the Director of Agri- 
culture, who is going home by this mail. I returned to 
rail-head by a route which took me through Oji River and 
Udi. For the most part the whole area is grass country, 
except in valleys which carry heavier vegetation, or would 
if they weren’t largely farmed. Palms (oil), however, are 
abundant and indicate the more fertile valley conditions. 
The “ Decatomas ” were not found in the more heavily 
shaded places, nor yet in the drier almost pure grass lands, 
but rather in the intermediate country. Owing to a faulty 
bicycle and the necessity to keep up with my carriers I 
could only—almost literally—grab at specimens as I passed 
along; wherever I saw the Convolvulus, which is their 
favourite food, I would stop for a minute or two and then 
hurry on, not favourable conditions for intensive work, 
but perhaps favourable for the discovery of the dominant 
types. I had certainly no time to select. Unfortunately I 
could not obtain a single pair; never saw any. On the day 
when I found the two unique specimens [, afzelii] or rather 
the forenoon of that day, I found very few of any kind. The 
morning had been wet, and the species are distinctly sun- 
loving. The few I found were hiding under leaves. It 
may, of course, be that they knew the uselessness of looking 
for open flowers in the rain. Dull weather markedly retards 
the flowering of many plants (e.g. cotton). Such Con- 
volvulus flowers as do open—they are campanulate in shape 
—fill up with water, swamping the ovary and anthers, the 
food of the beetles. The corolla is also eaten. In the 
circumstances I would not venture to say what environment 
conditions the dominance of any type. I would almost 
hazard a guess that altitude has not a little to do with it, but 
I had to give nearly all my time to the subject of coconut 
disease, which was the reason for my being there at all. 
Jan. 12, 1918.—This letter is simply an appendix to the 
last one. I just heard to-day that a supplementary mail 
was going, presumably by some intermediate cargo boat. 
