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RAY a £y Vic 
MAY 13 . 1916 
sri Pe DS) ¢) 
THE BRITISH RACES OF BUTTERFLIES. 73 
The British Races of Butterflies: their relationships and nomen-= 
clature. 
By ROGER VERITY, M.D. 
[While in no way wishing to minimise the importance of the fol- 
lowing intensive study of our native Lepidoptera by such a talented 
author as Dr. Verity, it should be specially borne in mind by our 
readers that we do not accept any changes of nomenclature which 
depend on the adoption of the specimens in the Linnean collection as 
“types, the National Nomenclature Committee having given a formal 
“opinion’’ adverse to this position. In this connection reference should 
also be made to Dr. Verity’s original article, ‘Revision of the Linnean 
Types of Palearctic Rhopalocera,” Jin. Linn. Soc. Zool., vol. xxxii., 
p- 178, etc. (1918), and also to the following criticisms :—(1) Dr. Karl 
Jordan, Jrn. Linn. Soc., Zool., l.c., p. 192; (2) Rev. G. Wheeler, Ent. 
Record, vol. xxv., p. 288 (1913) ; (8) G. T. Bethune-Baker, ‘‘ Observa- 
tions on Dr. Verity’s Review, etc.,” l.c., p. 251; (4) “ Further Notes, 
etc.,” l.c., p. 272; (5) Rev. G. Wheeler, ‘ A Critical Examination of 
Dr. Verity’s Paper, ete.,” Ht. Record, vol. xxvi., p. 20 (1914); (6) 
Dr. Roger Verity, ‘‘ Note in Answer, etc.,” l.c., p. 170; (7) Rev. G- 
Wheeler, ‘A Note in Reply, ete.,” l.c., p. 218. I may also add that 
Dr. Verity has kindly consented to forego the non-informational poly- 
nomial nomenclature so extensively used on the continent and so 
difficult for the reader to understand.—H.J.T.] 
For more than a century English entomologists had nearly entirely 
confined their activity to the British Islands, butin late years a change 
has occurred, and many of them have taken an interest in the Conti- 
nental Fauna; few, however, seem as yet to have taken up a study 
of the British races as compared to the nymo-typical one or to other 
Continental local forms. The consequence is that the former have 
nearly all been described and named by entomologists of other 
countries and in books or magazines published abroad. 
Being myself responsible for some of these descriptions, my object 
in this note is to collect them together, as well as those of other- 
authors which have come under my notice, for the use of English col- 
leagues, in the hope they may find the subject interesting and take up 
the work in a thorough and exhaustive way, availing themselves 
of the splendid series of insects which have been collected in England, 
Scotland and Ireland, and which ought to furnish a perfect picture of 
the geographical variation of species in these countries. I have reason 
to believe that several species have produced different geographical 
varieties within the limits of the British Isles, and I think it would be 
interesting to fix them by an accurate comparison of extensive series 
from as many localities as possible. These, of course, often encroach 
upon one another, especially in the intermediate regions, appearing as 
individual variations, but this does not diminish the importance of the 
extreme and most highly characterised amongst them. Coenonympha 
tiphon seems to be the only species which has been thoroughly worked 
out, but several other species would be just as interesting, although 
their varietal characters may not be as striking at first sight; con- 
Spicuous characters are by no means those which furnish the most 
interesting data. By carefully and patiently training one’s eyes to the 
Aprit 157, 1916. 
