The Zoologist— July, 1869. 1767 



Islaix^, where a coal depot had been established. It was then determined to try 

 whether the east coast of Greenland could not be reached ; but the ice utterly pre- 

 vented the effecting: of that purpose. At this time lat 81° 16' N. was reached. Souud- 

 iiigs were made both north and south of Spitzbergen, which resulted in the important 

 discovery that that island is a mere continuation of the Scandinavian peninsula, the 

 water to the south of Spitzbergen never having a greater depth than three hundred 

 fathoms, while north of it the ocean is two thousand futhoms deep. From this depth 

 clay was brought up containing not only microscopic animals, but also Crustacea. From 

 a depth of two thousand six hundred fathoms very small Foramini ferae, while and red, 

 were brought up. Drift wood was discovered in lat. 80° 40' N., and hollow glass balls, 

 which are used as floats by the Loffoden fishermen. These prove the continuation of 

 the Gulf Stream to the northward. In the beginning of September, Gilles Land and 

 Amsterdam Island were visited, and a number of the collections forwarded to Stock- 

 holm, to be deposited there and in Gottenburg, in the museums. Sept. 16 found the 

 Sofia again trying for the Seven Islands ; but the ice prevented the journey. However, 

 in 17^^ E. long. (Greenwich), lat. 81« 42' N. was reached, point which the people on 

 board the Sofia considered to be the faithest north ever reached. The ice, which pre- 

 vented any further progress to the north, contained stones, and was black with gravel, 

 indicating that it came from land, and giving the idea that there might be land far to the 

 north. The coal depot was agwin returned to, and the coal had to be dug out from 

 under the snow. Once more, notwithstanding the lateness of the year, the Sofia tried 

 to proceed farther north, and again reached 81° N. Here the ship was driven on a 

 berg, and a leak sprung, which was of so dangerous a character that, when the Sofia 

 arrived back at Amsterdam Island, the water was two feet deep in the cabin. After 

 this accident, farther polar exploration was impossible. One of the chief objects of 

 the Swedish expedition was to ascertain whether in the autumn it might not he pos- 

 sible to reach a point farther north than any that has yet been attained, and so to con- 

 tribute to the solution of the question as to the possibility of an open polar sea. The 

 officers of the expedition concluded that it would not be possible, even under the 

 most favourable circumstances, ever to reach farther north than 83° N., even if that 

 could ever be reached by the Spitzbergen route; and they consider that the best 

 chance of reaching the North Pole will be by sledge expeditions starting from Smith's 

 Sound or some similar place. 



Flight of Bullerflies, Moths, ^c— First as to the height to which they ascend. 

 " Benares, June 17, 1863.— This morning, whilst sitting in the verandah of Mr. Smith, 

 P.S.A., I observed a large moth, Anisoneura hypocyana, fly into the place and settle 

 inside on the sloping roof: I at once sent for my insect net, and placed it over him; 

 but, from the unevennessof the bamboos, he escaped me and flew out of the verandah. 

 Again he sought shelter under cover, and my man struck at him with the net ; he only 

 hit the body of the moth with the bamboo ring, and alarming him very much, caused 

 him to fly out of the verandah and steadily upwards in the air,—" towering," as it is 

 called, with birds. The sky was of the clearest blue, with a few light white clouds 

 and four of us were watching him. A swallow, H. Davurica, made a dash at him, but 

 without the slightest effect ; higher and higher he went, until we lost sight of him ; 

 although, owing to the background of white cloud, we could see him for a very long 

 lime. When he got very high, a large black swift {Cypselus affinis) contended with 



