A BUTTERFLY HUNT IN SOME PARTS OF UNEXPLORED FRANCE. 127 



Lyc^nid^. — Chrysophanus virgaurecB. — Males only out. 



C. hippothoe, var. eurybia. — Males over; isolated females in all 

 states, from freshly emerged to mere " rags of quality," chiefly the latter. 



C. dorilis, var. suhalpina. — Eare. 



C. phlceas. — Very rare ; probably between the two generations (?) 

 at this altitude. 



{Lycana alcon. — Mr. Morris and Mr. Tucker had fine series of 

 this butterfly from the neighbourhood of Barcelonnette. Not met 

 with by me.) 



Cupido minimus. — Nearly over. 



Nomiades semiargus. — Very occasionally. 



Agriades damon. — The commonest " Blue " round Larche, and in 

 pastures by the river on the Lauzanier route ; females predominant, 

 with several ab. maculata, Keverdin. 



A. corydon. — Scarce ; males only here and there. 



A. hylas, A. escheri. — Not common. 



Polyommatus icarus, P. eros. — Generally common from the village 

 to the Col, and on both sides of the Ubayette. Females by no means 

 scarce. A large form compared with the Swiss. 



P. medon. — Quite common. 



P. orbitulus. — Seemed to be very rare ; one or two only at the 

 highest levels explored (8000-8500 ft.). 



P. pheretes. — Locally common. The females taken by me in the 

 Ornaye valley, and the mountains generally to the south-east of 

 Larche, are so distinctive in appearance, when placed side by side 

 with examples from other alpine localities, as almost to constitute a 

 variety. The ground colour of all the wings on the upper side is 

 black ; not dark or cinnamon brown, as in those of my collection 

 from Switzerland, the Brenner, Stelvio, &c. But the most marked 

 feature is the discoidal spot on the fore wings, usually obsolescent or 

 insignificant in size and black in colour. Here it is large, and of the 

 same lovely azure hue as of the wings of the male ; while the basal 

 area of all four wings on the upper side is also heavily scaled with 

 blue of the same depth and brilliancy ; this latter character absent 

 in many, but not all of the Swiss and Eastern Alps forms of my 

 acquaintance. I propose, then, for this Larche form, if not already 

 named, the name azurica, new ab., female. The female Lycaenids, 

 as in the case of damon cited above, show a regional tendency to 

 develop blue spots on the upper side of the wings. 



(P. optilete, taken by Guillemot on the slopes which reach down 

 to the Lac de la Madeleine, and one of the rarest of the group in the 

 French Alps, I did not encounter.) 



Plebeius argyrognomon. — Not common. Females of the brown type. 



P. argus. — Common, but both sexes getting rather passes. 



I observed no Thechds at Larche, and 1 see that Guillemot failed 

 to do so. 



Papilionid^. — Papilio machaon. — A single fresh male in the Val 

 d'Ornaye at about 8000 ft. 



Parnassiiis apollo. — Not at the higher levels. Fairly common 

 below Larche. 



P. delitis. — From the upper Ubayette valley to about 8500 ft., in 

 the Val d'Ornaye. Fairly common ; males only observed or captured. 



