116 THE entomologist's EECOKD. 



Lepidoptera at Locarno. 



By T. A. CHAPMAN, M.D., F.Z.S., F.E.S. 



Locarno does not appear to have escaped the inclement and late 

 whiter that affected so large a part of Europe, and during the portion 

 of April I spent there things were quite two or three weeks later than 

 in 1899. On April 6th, 1899, I saw 26 species of butterflies in a 

 quarter of an hour on a scrap of ground of about one-eighth of an acre. 

 Several days later this year the same spot had quite a wintry aspect 

 and no grass had begun to grow. On the 14th a couple of warm days 

 had given the grass a start, but a solitary EiicJdoe cardamines was the 

 only butterfly to be seen on this spot. This year there had been no 

 warm or even fine dry weather up to the middle of April, hence the 

 difference. Last year Pohjommatus orion occurred everywhere during 

 the first half of April. This year two very small specimens were seen 

 for the first time near the Madonna del Sasso on April 15th, and were 

 so far the only Lycfenids observed. The 18th and 19th were two 

 fairly warm days, and on the 20th P. orion was flying more freely. 



Nevertheless, it would be wrong to represent butterflies as absent. 

 On every bright day Gonepteri/.r rJtavi )iivf SiS seen flying solitarily nearly 

 everywhere, but altogether in some numbers, but certainly less freely 

 on the 18th and 19th, when some warm weather began. Of other 

 hibernated species, Vanessa io, Aijlais urticae, Eugenia polijMoros, 

 Polygonia c-album were tolerably frequent, V. io being the most 

 abundant, but very closely followed by Euranessa antiopa, which 

 occurred everyAvhere, a score or so being sometimes seen in a day's 

 walk. Last year only one or two were seen, the difterence being very 

 marked, the most abundant home being apparently in the Val Verzasca. 

 Unlike the English (?) specimens, with their classical white borders, 

 that I saw so abundantly at Grenoble some few springs back, these 

 were all genuine continental specimens, Avith straw-tinted borders, and 

 some specimens were very fresh and in fine condition. 



Of spring emergences Papilin podalirius was the most notable 

 species. The first was seen on April 10th, and after a few days they 

 were quite frequent, loving to settle and feed on the blossoms of the 

 peach trees, which by the 16th were in full bloom, making a most 

 pleasing combination of form and colour. The peach trees alone in 

 full bloom resulted in a most glorious effect as seen at sunset from the 

 Ponte Brollo. The wide valley looking up to Intragna is picturesque 

 enough, but the peach trees are here very abundant, and the sun 

 shining through the petals showed their rich colour with a most 

 luminous eflect. Papilio wachaon wa,s also observed on April 10th, but 

 only one or two other specimens were seen. Aiyi/nnis latona was 

 frequent. A few specimens were Avorn enough to show that it had 

 been on the wing some time. This seems to be by far the earliest of 

 the Argynnidae to emerge, occurring at Cannes in February or even 

 January, and always a good month earlier than BrentJm dia, Avhich 

 seems to be the next species to emerge, but not perhaps clearly earlier 

 than B. euphrosyne. Euchloe cardamines, Pieris rapae, P. napi, Pararge 

 egeria, P. megaera, and Chrysophanus phlaeas were all more or less 

 frequent, but P. hrassicae was not specially noted, and was certainly 

 not common. Coenonyxrpha pamphilus began to emerge about the 

 14th. Leucophada sinapis appeared about the same date, and soon 



