SCIENCE- GOSSIP. 



79 



■white. U.s. very similar to that of the last species, 

 but lighter and with less green coloration. 

 Hab. E. Buchara, N.W. Pamir. 



31. C. sifaniea Gr.-Gr. Hor. XXV. 1891. 

 p. 447. 



48 — 52 mm. 



$ wings greenish-white, differing from C. 

 alpheraltii in having a dusky basal shading, the 

 neuration also marked with dusky scales ; the 

 marginal spots on f.w. are more elongated and 

 regularly placed. Disc, spot large and distinct. 

 H.w. without any marginal border ; disc, spot white 

 and indistinct. $ resembles $ , but has the 





A 



j& 



m 



C. sifaniea. Female. 



ground colour white and the basal shading less 

 strong, especially on f.w. Marg. fringes the same 

 colour as the wings. Antennae blackish, with a 

 very slight red tinge. U.s. white, faintly veined 

 with green. H.w. a pale delicate green, with 

 lighter streaks. Disc, spot white, but very small 

 and indistinct. 



Hab. Amdo (Stgr.). Koko Noor (R.H.). 



32. C. ladaekensis Feld. Nor. p. 197 ; t. 27 ; 

 figs. 8, 9. 1865. Elwes. Tr. Ent. Soc. 1884. 



36—42 mm. 



Much resembles C. nastes var. werdandi in mark- 

 ings, but the ground colour is bright yellow, 

 slightly tinged with orange in $ . The spots on 

 the border of f.w. are very regularly placed, seven 

 in number, and of nearly equal size. 



Hab. Ladak, S.E. Thibet. 



There is a fine series in Leech's Collection, 

 from which this note is made ; the species is want- 

 ing in my own cabinet. This butterfly seems to 

 come very close to the next species, C. nastes. 



33. C. nastes B. Ic. 8, 4, 5, p. 245. Lg. B. E. 

 p. 57, pi. xi. fig. 4. 



36 — 45 mm. 



The following is a modification of my own 

 description of this species I.e. The S has the 

 wings dark yellowish-green. F.w\ with a black 

 disc, spot, and some lightish spots along on. marg. 

 H.w. somewhat lighter, with a very indistinct 

 orange disc. spot. Fringes, head, and antennae 

 red. U.s. f.w. greenish-white, dusky green at 

 tips, disc, spot indistinct. H.w. dark green, with 

 a paler ou. marg. ; disc, spot small and reddish, 



with a pearly-white centre. J rather lighter 

 with more distinct yellowish spots than in $ . 



Hab. Labrador, and generally the American 

 Polar regions. 



I was in error in describing C. nastes as inhabit- 

 ing N. Lapland. Other authors having so de- 

 scribed it, I was led to suppose it European ; but 

 in the typical form, at least, it occurs only in 

 Polar America. ( Vide Wallengren, Scand. Lep., 

 p. 142.) 



a. var. rossll G-n. Ann. S. Fr. 1864, p. 199. $ 

 has the discal area orange, £ white. Hab. 

 Boothia Felix. Stg. Cat. 1901, p. 16. 



b. var. werdandi Zett. Ins. Lap. 908. Colias 

 werdandi. Lg. B. E. p. 51, pi. 12,, fig. 1. Larger 

 than C. nastes. S very light greenish-yellow, with 

 the neuration black and well defined. F.w. On. 

 marg. with a broad blackish band, on which is a 

 row of spots of the ground colour. Disc spot 

 black and distinct. H.w. without markings except 

 a few dark spots forming a narrow ou. marginal 

 band, disc, spot very faint. Basal shading very 

 slight. J has the ground colour nearly white. 

 all the dark markings more denned. Disc, spot 

 h.w. light yellow. U.s. much as in C. nastes, but 

 rather lighter. Hab. Mountains in Lapland and 

 Sweden, Nova Zembla. This is the European form 

 of C. nastes. I have always considered it- a good 

 species, but it still appears in " Stauclinger's Cata- 

 logue " as a varietal form, and I therefore give it as 

 such here. It is exceedingly difficult with our 

 present state of knowledge to speak positively of 

 the relative zoological value of C. nastes, C. 

 eoeandica and its varieties, C. melinos, and perhaps 

 even of the common European C. pliicomone ; it is 

 quite possible that they may all be forms of the 

 same species modified by the influences of latitude 

 and altitude. 



e. ab. sulphurea Lampa. Tidskr. VI. 1885. 

 p. 10. Wings sulphur-coloured. Hab. Sweden, 

 Norway, Lapland. 



d. ab. $ immacidata Lampa. I.e. 11. Marginal 

 borders of f.w. without spots. Hab. Lapland. 



e. ab. christienssoni Lampa. I.e. Like the last, 

 but ochreous or pale orange in both sexes. 

 ? Hybrid. Wendandi et heclae (H.C.L.). Hab. 

 Lulea, Lappmark (Sweden). 



The forms c f d, and e are found in Lapland and 

 the European polar habitat of the species. They 

 are probably closer to C. werdandi than they are to 

 the type, and go a long way to confirm my original 

 opinion of the specific value of C. werdandi, of 

 which they seem to be aberrations. 

 {To be continued.} 



The new Principal of the University of London 

 is Dr. A. W. Riicker, Professor of Physics at the 

 Royal College of Science and Secretary of the 

 Royal Society. It is understood that in con- 

 sequence of this appointment Professor Riicker 

 intends to resign his secretaryship of the Royal 

 Society at the next anniversary meeting. 



