46 A NATURALIST IN THE TRANSVAAL. 



insects are found in a semi-torpid condition under 

 stones. In these situations I have found Carabidce, 

 Staphylinidce, Paussidce, Curculionidce, Chrysomelidce, 

 Gallerucidce, and Coccinellidce among beetles, and Pen- 

 tat omidce and Pyrrhocoridce among Hemiptera, but few 

 in numbers, and at this season the Pretorian province of 

 the Transvaal is most uninviting to the entomologist. 

 The weather is still like spring at home, the nights and 

 mornings quite cold, and it is difficult to believe that 

 one is living in Southern Africa. 



With the advent of September the thorny acacias 

 were found to be thickly covering with leaves, and the 

 long white thorns being thus hidden, their striking 

 protection was scarcely visible. It is only when these 

 trees are bare of leaf that it can be clearly appreciated 

 what impregnable objects they are to any herbivorous 

 animal. The grass-lires were now being pushed on by 

 the Boers, and I frequently noticed that blackened 

 areas of some miles in extent, often embracing several 

 hills, replaced what quite recently resembled in colour a 

 field of ripe oats. The veld has thus three aspects the 

 dull ochraceous hue of the dry season, the blackened 

 tint following the spring fires, and the green coloration 

 of the summer. Numbers of insects in their immature 

 stages, as well as small reptiles, must be destroyed by 

 these fires, and, as remarked before, small seedling trees 

 have little chance of reaching that stage of growth and 

 hardihood necessary to survive the conflagration. 



During September some of the acacias bloomed, con- 

 sequent upon the undoubtedly higher temperature, and 

 these flowers were visited by swarms of Diptera; but 

 still scarcely a beetle was to be seen, excepting a few 

 Scarabceidce. The butterfly list was increased by 

 Hypanis ilithyia, Precis chantha,and Catopsilia florella, 

 whilst Anoplocnemis curvipes, on the wing, gave promise 

 that Hemiptera would soon be seen, though represen- 

 tatives of various families of this order, as well as of 

 Coleoptera, could still be found, but only under stones. 

 On Sept. 25th a heavy shower at midnight gave hopes 

 of the advent of the rains ; but it did not last long, and 



