120 JOURNAL Otf CONCHOLOGY, VoL. I4, NO. 4, OCTOBfiR, I913. 



H. (Tachea) nemoralis Linne. — 



This species occurs very plentifully in nearly all parts of the United 

 Kingdom, having been found in every county in England and Ireland, 

 and in Scotland as far north as a hne drawn from Kincardineshire on 

 the east coast to the Island of Lismore on the west. 



On the continent it is found all over Germany and Austria, except 

 in Transylvania, and has spread into Western and Southern Russia. 

 It is found all over Switzerland ; Italy, except the extreme south ; 

 in France, though not so far recorded from some of the central 

 departments; in Spain and Portugal; and there is a record by Dr. 

 Kobelt from Algeria. It is also found in Belgium, Holland, Den- 

 mark, the southern part of Sweden, and in the western part of 

 Norway, as far north as Bergen. It has been introduced into the 

 United States, first, I believe, at Lexington, Virginia, where it has 

 spread considerably, and subsequently into New Jersey, Pennsylvania, 

 Massachusetts, while Prof. Cockerell records it in Colorado. It has 

 also been introduced into Canada, and is spreading there. It has 

 also been recorded from New Zealand. 



Mr. J. ^V. Taylor in his Monograph considers it a dominant species, 

 the advance guard of which is steadily extending its territory and 

 gradually dispossessing from the regions they occupy the closely- 

 allied yet earlier evolved and therefore comparatively weaker and 

 less dominant species — vi/idobofie/isis, sylvatica, and Iwrtensis. 



The largest specimens I have taken were from the Island of Inish- 

 more, one of the Aran Isles in Galway Bay, and from Ballyvaughan 

 and Black Head, co. Clare. On a visit to the Isle of Inishmurray, 

 off the coast of Sligo, we found a quantity of very large ones, but on 

 the mainland opposite, at Streedagh Point, the shells were very small 

 and utterly unlike the Inishmurray ones. 



The var. minor has been found in different parts of the country ; 

 I have specimens from Miller's Dale, Derbyshire ; Start Point, South 

 Devon ; and A^alencia Island, co. Kerry. 



The colour is very variable, although the var. libelhila and the 

 var. rubella are the commonest, but in some districts var. castanea is 

 plentiful. In some places you find the different colours living 

 together on one bank, and from near Limerick I have received the 

 most variable series as regards colour that I have ever seen. On the 

 continent they are also very variable in colour, although there are in 

 some districts very few, except the var. libellula ; but in the Pyrenees 

 they seem to vary a great deal. Dr. C^sar Boettger writes me that 

 he considers that they are, as a rule, more brilliantly coloured the 

 further west they are found ; certainly the brightest colours are from 

 the West of Ireland. 



