146 MY LIFE AS A NATURALIST 



their stature until they have obtained, by dint of great industry, 

 a prominent position in the hedgerow, or bush, where they have 

 become thoroughly established. 



The bank bordering the deep ditch but recently void of plant 

 associations, now made gay w r ith a wealth of wild flowers is a 

 study of itself. First came the seedlings, Goosegrass, young 

 Parsley, Chickweed, Stitchwort, Woundwort, and the rest. Later 

 on, the scene was hardly recognisable, so great was the change, as 

 crowds of plant warriors took part in the struggle for supremacy. 



Where the Celandine starred the pathside of this pleasant 

 hedgebank, only a stone's throw from my home, and along which 

 I wander day by day, it is in Summer peopled with tall Hedge 

 Parsley and Woundw r ort, the latter rough to the touch and 

 possessing a pungent odour. In the damper portions of the bank, 

 the Sweet Ciceley flourishes, and may at once be distinguished 

 from the commoner Hedge Parsley by the mealy patches upon 

 the graceful, fern-like leaves. I first met with this plant in 

 Scotland, from whence I gathered the long-ribbed seed, and 

 scattered it in this southern fastness, where it evidently finds 

 the conditions suited to its prosperity. 



Magic is in the bushes and herbaceous plants which con- 

 stitute the hedge itself. Here Buckthorn, Hawthorn, Maple, 

 Dogwood, and Wild Clematis present an impenetrable barrier, 

 and in Spring the Brimstone Butterfly comes sailing along 

 the hedgerow in search of Buckthorn for the purpose of 

 depositing her eggs, or a buccaneering Humble Bee introduces 

 its drowsy monotone as it industriously pursues its sweet pillage. 

 I do not understand where these Butterflies, such as the Peacock 

 and Small Tortoiseshell, hibernate during Winter, or how they 

 are able to withstand such severe weather as we experienced 

 during 1916-7. A bright, sunny day, tempered with a warm 

 atmosphere, will tempt them from their hiding places in early 

 Spring ; but it is not until the Small Blue, Orange-tip, Small 

 Copper, Wall Brown, the Kinglet, Meadow Brown, Grayling, the 

 Skipper, and other Butterflies are a -wing that insect life reaches 

 high -water mark. All these possess marked characteristics 

 during flight. The burnished wings of the Small Copper always 

 attract my attention in Summer, as this gay little fellow flirts 

 before my eyes along a well-trodden path, settling just ahead 

 of me out of harm's way, and yet permitting a fairly close approach. 

 The Wall Brown has a somewhat similar habit, although it is a 

 larger species. It spreads its velvety wings wide open upon the 



