304 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



could not rear them, I proceeded to collect all fche eggs I could 

 find on that plant, and transfer them to R. catharticus, by the 

 simple expedient of pinning the portion of leaf wheron they had 

 been deposited to the most suitable situation on the new shrub. 

 In this manner I procured a large number of larvae, the food- 

 plant evidently suiting them admirably, as comparatively few 

 failed to grow and wax strong. 



On August 4th, a bright, sunny day after several dull ones, 

 I placed a box containing a number of my home-reared G. rhamni 

 beneath a clump of brambles and left it open, so that the insects 

 could fly as soon as they felt inclined to. Keturning to the spot 

 a couple of hours later, I was surprised to see no less than four 

 males of cleopatra hovering over the brambles, but on drawing 

 quietly near their presence was soon explained to me. Beneath 

 each cleopatra was the quivering form of a female rhamni, with 

 abdomen pointing upwards and wings half open and flattened 

 out in a most unnatural position. The unexpected and un- 

 welcome suitors were most persistent in their court, and by 

 sheer rough treatment one after the other succeeded in forcing 

 the object of its attentions to take to wing, when the pair would 

 soar high in the air and then return low down among the 

 herbage, the female doing her utmost to escape. Later on in 

 the month the wild chase of rhamni by cleopatra was a matter of 

 common occurrence, though whether any results were obtained 

 is more than doubtful. 



At the end of August I had to return to England, and it was 

 necessary to abandon my caterpillars to their own devices. I, 

 however, took with me half a dozen pupae* (just turned), and 

 about fifty larvae of cleopatra, which were all doing well. On the 

 R. catharticus of the hedgerows of Bucks I found no succulent 

 young leaves to oft'er them, and the want of these made itself 

 apparent at once. Many turned prematurely, and many died. 

 How those that I left behind have fared I know not, but their 

 parents were still on the wing, healthy and strong, up to the 

 end of August, and I am of opinion that they will so have con- 

 tinued through September. 



NEW SPECIES OF INDIAN CHRYSIDID^. 



By Major C. G. Nurse, Indian Staff Corps. 



The species described in the following paper form part of a 

 collection of Hymenoptera made by me during the past two 

 years at Deesa in Northern Gujarat, Quetta in Baluchistan, and 

 during a two months' trip to Kashmir in 1901. 



* Two of these pup^ kindly sent to me by Mr. Purefoy produced fine 

 specimens of cleopatra in September last. — R. S. 



