Observed in a tour through India and Ceylon. 121 



Peradeniya, alt. c. 1200 ft. 

 March 10th, 1904. 



These justly celebrated gardens lie about four miles 

 south of Kandy near the centre of the island. Their 

 situation is beautiful and all the familiar " hot-house 

 plants " grow luxuriantly. Splendid palms of many kinds, 

 huge bamboos almost as tall, Dract&nas, Crotons, Acalyphas, 

 Marantas, nutmeg, cinnamon, camphor, huge trees of 

 Ficus elastica with roots spreading far over the surface, etc., 

 etc. Grass has been largely ousted by the sensitive-plant, 

 Mimosa pudica, which, introduced from South America, 

 has run wild. It grows about a foot and half high, and 

 when one walks through it a broad path is left owing to 

 the collapse of the leaves. 



Here, well out of reach, I saw my first Omithoptera, 

 truly it is well named ; I missed a second specimen through 

 sheer excitement. Several Catopsilia pomona were netted, 

 one was a female verging on the catilla form, the others 

 were typical males, one of which had a slight scent. Of 

 three male Terias hecabe two were wet-season, the other 

 of " intermediate wet " form. A male T. libythea was also 

 of wet-season type, a female was also taken. The only 

 Nymphalids noted were two Neptis varmona and several 

 Precis iphita. Here also I took my first Paralitica 

 ceylonica, Feld., a Danaid found in abundance later. 



Of Mycalesis mandata, Moore, I only saw one, but the 

 pretty little Yphthima ceylonica was swarming amongst 

 the sensitive-plants. Mr. E. E. Green, the entomologist 

 to the Ceylon Government, suggested that its colouring 

 might be indirectly protective, since on the wing it looks 

 much smaller than it is, only the white posterior two- 

 thirds of the hind-wings being conspicuous, and these the 

 least vitally important to the insect. The only Blue seen 

 was Zizera Jcarsandra, Moore. 



A second visit to the gardens, rather late one afternoon, 

 produced no insects, but gave me my only sight of a wild 

 cobra, about 2 J feet long, with a very large " hood " ; it 

 crawled quickly away into the roots of a " travellers' palm." 



Unfortunately for me Mr. Green was on the point of 

 going to England on leave, but though busy with his 

 preparations for departure, he was good enough to show 

 me several very interesting things, such as larva? of the 



