JONES — ON. NOVA SCOTIAN DIURNAL LEPlDOPTERA. 19 



a scene of natural beauty, sufficient to attract the attention of the 

 most heedless. That these insects have very acute olfactory 

 organs, I have had frequent opportunities of observing, and I can 

 safely say that they can scent the odour of lilac flowers when a 

 moderate breeze is blowing, for I have stood and watched them, at 

 a distance of 150 yards to leeward. Canadian entomologists state 

 that there are two broods during the summer in that part of the 

 Dominion, but in Nova Scotia, I think there is only one of this 

 species. A perfect community of these gaudy butterflies may be 

 seen occasionally hovering over and lighting upon wet spots on 

 roadways during the month of June, and I have observed that thev 

 are by no means particular as to the nature of such moisture, for 

 I have several times seen them congregate in manure where horses 

 have lately staled. Go^ in his very interesting work '' The 

 Canadian Naturalist^'' remarks their fondness for wet spots, and 

 says that he has counted as many as fifty-two in one such situation, 

 but no author that I am aware of has ever noted the circumstance 

 of their fondness for urine. 



This species is found, more or less abundantly over the N. A. 

 continent as far south as Mexico, and as far north as Fort Simpson 

 on the Mackenzie Eiver — according to Go^ it is also found in 

 Newfoundland. 



Portia oleracea, (Har.) 



According to Mr. Belt we have two kinds of this common 

 butterfly ; the first at the end of May, 4.nd the other in July. In 

 August abundant over potatoe patches. 



This is one of the pests of the horticulturist, for it lays its eggs 

 and the caterpillars are hatched, upon the cabbage cauliflower, 

 and other oleraceous plants. In Nova Scotia we have however, 

 but little reason to complain of its ravages, for it is not what 

 naturalists would term abundant. It would have been a fortunate 

 circumstance had we only this one species of cabbage butterfly to 

 damage our crops, but as I shall show presently, we now possess a 

 perfect demon in this respect, which far outvies our native insect 

 in destructiveness. 



It is distributed over the northern portion of the United States,, 

 and the British Provinces. 



