SCIENCE- GOSSIP. 



333 



innumerable bits having many substances enclosed. 

 Entomologists come here to study the insects of pre- 

 historic periods. Species of ants have been dis- 

 covered which once lived on the Baltic coast and 

 now are only found in countries of the southern hemi- 

 sphere 



Parts of the collection consist of amber found in 

 other countries, such as Sicily, India, and Burmah. 

 There are also the diy gums of trees — copal, for 

 instance — to be compared with the fossil gum ; and, 

 lastly, there are the minerals which have been found 

 with amber. Two of these, hitherto undescribed, 

 have for obvious reasons been called Stantienite and 

 Beckerite. In a conspicuous place on a bracket 



against the wall there can be seen the largest piece of 

 amber obtained from the mines, a lump two feet long, 

 six inches thick, and weighing about twelve pounds. 



Quite recently the Prussian Government has pur- 

 chased all the interests of the shareholders in the 

 company that acquired the mines from the amber 

 merchants and which latterly worked them. 



Once again we left Kiinigsberg and its amber 

 museum, this time with the impression that, through 

 the mines of Palmnicken, the nature and origin of 

 amber are established beyond doubt. This once 

 precious material is now produced from these mines 

 in such quantities as to place it within the reach of 

 every one in its manifold uses. 



BUTTERFLIES OF THE PALAEARCTIC REGION. 

 By Henry Charles Lang, M.D., M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P. Lond. 



{Continued from page 299.) 



Family II. 



PIERIDAE. 



Larva. — Cylindrical, smooth or pubescent, not 

 spiny. Slightly tapering at the extremities. Never 

 with retractile forks. ■ Colour generally either brown 

 or green. 



Pupa. — Generally angulated, sometimes very slender, 

 attached at the caudal end, and with a thoracic girth 

 as in the family Papilionidae. Usually of a light 

 grey or green colour, sometimes speckled with black. 



Imago — Usually of medium size, sometimes small. 

 Wings rounded or occasionally pointed at the apices, 

 but never tailed or emarginate. In. marg. h.w. never 

 concave, but forming a channel or groove for the 

 abdomen, a character which at once separates this 

 family from the Papilionidae. Antennae of moderate 

 length or short ; clubs ovate, not recurved. Discoidal 

 cell closed. Internal nervure f.w. wanting. Anterior 

 legs in $ and 9 perfect. Tibiae without spines. 

 Prevailing colour of wings white or yellow, varying 

 from greenish to reddish-orange. No ocellated spots, 

 except on u.s. of h.w. of some species. Generally a 

 simple black disc, spot on f.w. 



This is a very extensive family, occurring in nearly 

 every part of the world. It is by far most nu- 

 merously represented near the Equator. Many of the 

 tropical species display great brilliancy of colouring, 

 and sometimes depart from the general rule of white 

 and yellow, to exhibit tints of red or blue. 



We are very familiar with some of our British 

 species of the Pieridae. The common -'whites" — 

 Pieris brassicac, P. rapae, and P. napi — being abun- 

 dant everywhere in this country ; even occasionally to 

 be seen in the streets of crowded cities. It is no 

 infrequent thing to meet with P. rapae, the " common 

 white," in the heart of London. The beautiful 

 ■ ' orange-tip " Anthocharis cardamines must be familiar 



as a spring butterfly to every one who is nol ab- 

 solutely confined to city streets. In the South 

 of England "the brimstone-butterfly" (A'/;, 

 rhamni) is generally welcomed as the herald of 

 spring, and perhaps from its yellow colour gave origin 

 to the word " butterfly " itself. The " clouded yellow " 

 (Colins cdtisa) with its beautiful golden wings is to lie 

 found on chalk downs and in clover-fields almi 

 every year in the south-eastern counties, but occa- 

 sionally multiplies itself so greatly as to spread in 

 great numbers over the length and breadth of tin 

 British Islands. The years 1S77 and 1892 were 

 famous for its general appearance. In the latter year 

 the rarer Colias kyale, "the light clouded yellow," 

 occurred at the same lime in considerable numbers, 

 and was very common in many places. Three other 

 species of Pieridae are British, viz. Lettcophasia 

 sinapti, "the wood white." always local and now 

 less common than formerly. Aporia crataegi, "the 

 black-veined while," was ..nee not uncommon in 

 Southern England, but became in the latter years of 

 the nineteenth century very scarce in our islands, and 

 fur a time was looked upon as on the verge of ex- 

 tinction. ForlunateK it lias reappeared in some of 

 its old Kentish localities, and it is to be hoped has 

 re-established itself. The remaining British sp 

 Pieris daplidice, " the Bath white." ha^ always been 

 rare in Britain, and only occurs sporadically and 

 occasionally. 



On the continent of Europe the Pieridae are well 

 represented. Aporia crataegi is very plentiful, anil 

 widely distributed in almost all countries. In some 

 districts it is a highly noxious insect, the larvae being 

 gregarious and devastating not only thorn-trees, bill 

 fruit-bearing trees of all kinds in orchards. This 

 species is abundant in sub-Alpine districts, and 

 strikingly resembles in its appearance and flight 

 members of the genus Parnassiiis. 



