11 



South Africa it will be invaluable, with its 27 coloured plates and 

 39 half-tone illustrations. Many species of Lepidoptera, Coleop- 

 tera, Hemiptera, and Orthoptera are here described and figured for 

 the first time. Although the author doubts if the publication will 

 be continued, we can only hope that the necessary support will 

 insure further instalments. 



Another volume of the " Fauna of British India " has appeared 

 dealing with the Freshwater Sponges, Hydroids, and Polyzoa, by 

 N. Annandale, and is a worthy companion to the already long list 

 of works in this fine series. 



" The Flying Apparatus of the Blowfly," by Dr. Wolfgang 

 Ritter, published by the Smithsonian Institute, is an extremely 

 interesting memoir, with a large number of figures of the blowfly's 

 wings in various positions to elucidate how such movements )is 

 turning and other evolutions in flight are accomplished. 



The year that has just passed has been so remarkable for high 

 temperatures and continuous sunshine, that I think it would be 

 interesting to see how it has affected the Lepidoptera and their 

 relative abundance or otherwise. It v.'ill be recollected that about 

 the middle of April last we experienced some exceedingly cold 

 weather, that this was rapidly succeeded by warmth, and that 

 onwards through the months of May, June (except for a brief 

 cool week), July, August, and September, we experienced unusually 

 bright, warm, sunny weather, with a spell of extreme heat in July 

 and August. It is, of course, impossible to say if this or that 

 abundance was due directly to the high temperature. Scarcity and 

 abundance are caused by a complex set of forces. It must be 

 sufficient therefore to record the facts as we find them. In the 

 cases of second and third broods, when usually there is only one, 

 there is pretty clear evidence that climate has been the cause. The 

 cases that have come chiefly under observation are those of the 

 butterflies. The year 1911 will probably be recollected by 

 entomologists as the butterfly year. Usually one of the very first 

 species that comes under our notice in the spring is Gnaepteryx rhawni. 

 I saw certainly more hibernated specimens early in the j'ear, and 

 one was observed even in my own garden at Surbiton, yet I cannot 

 find that the species has been observed to have been commoner in 

 the summer. Another species that is seen very early in the year is 

 (.'elastrina anjiolun. It was probably not more common than usual 

 in its first brood, but the second brood, which was oat in the 

 Haslemere district by July 9th, w-as certainly more plentiful than 

 usual. The earliest date of the second brood I find to be July 6th, 



