THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



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to be found, this weed exists only in small quantities, and, as a consequence, 

 Artemis is scarce and perhaps non-existent. Should, however, anything 

 cause the Scabious to become more plentiful Artemis in all probability 

 reappears, Here, Artemis was almost unknown for some years prior to ,83. 

 The bad seasons we had before that year, and the lack of stock in the country, 

 produced by the consequent impoverishment of the farmers, had by that time 

 caused the fields to become very rough, and the Scabious plentiful, and 

 Artemis definitely established itself in a few fields that year, and where it was 

 found it was in considerable numbers. Last year its range had considerably 

 widened, and the larvse were extremely numerous in several rough fields, at 

 wide distances from each other. Unfortunately it was very cold about the 

 time that the imagines should have emerged, and their number was by no 

 means proportionate with the number of larvse seen. There were, however, 

 I hope, enough to ensure a good show this year if the weather be 

 propitious. 



4. L. Aegiolus. — Without having some more definite information as to 

 the diminution of the numbers of this species, I cannot hope to give any 

 satisfactory explanation of the causes of that diminution. Perhaps, however, 

 the insect is only changing its localities. At all events, after the species had 

 been many years absent, a specimen made its appearance here in '82, and 

 was followed by several more in '83, while in '84 the species had become 

 sufficiently plentiful to be marked as "numerous" in our list for that year. 



It will be seen from what I have said about the species named above, that 

 wherever I am able to give an explanation of the causes of their disappearance, 

 the chief of those causes is man. Unfortunately these explanations are very 

 few in number. There is one other point to which I should like to call 

 attention, and that is the suggestion which Mr. Eobson makes quite at the 

 end of his article, that the cutting down of our forests has had a prejudical 

 effect upon the number of our butterflies. This I think is certainly a 

 valuable suggestion, so many of our butterflies being lovers of woodlands, 

 and it is one about which I hope we shall hear more. 



In conclusion, I would repeat that the points which I have endeavoured to 

 prove are — first, that although the number of our butterflies is undoubtedly 

 diminishing, that diminution is hardly so great as people would lead us to 

 think at present, and there is no fear that many of our species will be extinct 

 in anything like the immediate future ; and secondly, that the chief causes 

 of all permanent disappearances of our butterflies is man, whose influence 

 far exceeds that of climate or anything else. And I will also repeat Mr. 

 Robson's hope that further reports on butterflies will be furnished by many 

 readers of the Young Naturalist, adding, however, this remark, that reports 



