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of comparatively low elevation and mild climates, constant in pattern 

 and colour in the south-eastern portions of its range, of which Asia 

 Minor may be considered the boundary, and becoming variable in 

 the north-western, of which the British Islands form the limit, and 

 assuming the specially dark forms which we know as var. curtisii only 

 in some of the more northerly portions of the latter. 



In such places as they do occur, these dark forms appear to be 

 fairly generally distributed, and not confined to any particular patch 

 of land, except perhaps in Orkney. Thus Mr. W. Salvage, who has 

 probably had as large an experience with them as any English 

 collector, tells me that in the Forres district they are to be found on 

 the low-lying sand-hills, in Altyre Woods about two miles from Forres, 

 and in Darnaway Forest on the other side of the river Findhorn, 

 both places situated just above sea-level ; the larvae feeding on broom, 

 blackthorn, whitethorn, grasses, bramble, birch, and even furze and 

 juniper, — in fact, on anything they can find on which to pick up a 

 living ; also on the Califer, a hill about three miles outside Forres 

 up to an elevation of from 500 to 1000 feet, where the larvae feed on 

 furze, broom, and grass, there being little else for them to eat, and 

 that the usual proportion of dark forms throughout the whole district, 

 which is embraced in a radius of about six miles, is about 20 per 

 cent., and that much the same state of affairs exists in the Suther- 

 land and Inverness localities, but that the proportion 01 dark forms 

 is not quite so large. Mr. McArthur gives some further details with 

 regard to the Forres locality. He says, " Mr. Salvage, who has collected 

 so often in the district, is no doubt quite correct in saying that the 

 larv» are to be found all round the neighbourhood ; but from my 

 own experience I can only give you two localities, namely, a sandy 

 stretch of land on the river Findhorn, some 50 feet above sea-level, 

 and a moor some three miles from Forres, the elevation of which is, 

 I should think, about 400 to 500 feet above the sea, and there the 

 larv^ were common. I had as nearly as possible the same number 

 of larvae from each locality, and kept them separate, and I distinctly 

 remember that those from the moor produced more curtisii than 

 those from the Findhorn. In Hoy (Orkney) comes is rare, and the 

 few larvae I took came from a very bare, wet peat-moor some 60 feet 

 above the sea, and, as you know, they produced 07ily dark forms." 



Mr. W. Reid, of Pitcaple, whose experience of the species in its 

 Scottish haunts extends over some twenty years, gives some interest- 

 ing details, which he has collated from his note-books. He agrees 

 with Mr. Salvage that throughout the Forres district the percentage 

 of curtisii is as nearly as possible the same on both the sand-hills 

 and the highest lands ; he finds no difference between its habits and 

 those of the typical forms, it being fond of concealment, such as is 

 LO be found in thatch, haycocks, peat-stacks, &c., never resting on 

 the ground except it has been disturbed, and then only for a few 

 moments, until it has recovered itself He finds that the head- 

 quarters of the dark {curtisii) forms are the Moray (Forres) and 



