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THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



place was on the slope of the railway bank, and was very stony. My 

 brother was also waiting for the Aurata to fly over the mint, when he sud- 

 denly threw down his net, uttering a loud cry, and found himself covered 

 with little ants, which appeared to be of opinion that human blood was par- 

 ticularly refreshing on a warm day. These little creatures clung so fast and 

 bit so hard, that he had to take off his trousers, socks, and shoes, before he 

 could get rid of them — nor could I persuade him to come with me again for 

 more Aurata, The canal furnished hundreds of drowned Pyrales ) but so 

 damaged were they that I had a difficulty in making them out to be Para- 

 ponyx stratiotalis. I used to come up along the canal bank at dusk to try 

 and take them on the wing, but did not succeed, and at the end of a week I 

 had only two miserable specimens which I had rescued from the canal, along 

 with one Ennomos angularia. Then I discovered how to take them, and 

 could have obtained any quantity. I found they rested during the day 

 on the stonework of the canal just above the water, and near the lock gates, 

 and succeeded in getting a good series before I left. About four miles 

 up the canal was an older wood than the others, and here I saw Gonepteryx 

 rhamni swoop down and settle on a oak bush about two feet high. Soon 

 after a fritillary rested on the wild thyme one moment, just long enough to 

 show me that it was Argynnis PapMa, so worn as not to be worth a pin. 

 Then a light brown butterfly darted past and across the canal, I shouted to 

 my brother " Did you see that ? '? " Yes, what is it ? " " Dont know, 

 should fancy it is Selene, only its too late for it," and it certainly looked 

 more like that than any thing I knew ; I saw two more, when one day the 

 following incident occurred which gave me the opportunity of identifying this 

 species. We were down in a valley, with the hills on each side so steep that 

 it was almost impossible to walk down, and to add to the difficulty the place 

 was thickly overgrown with deadly nightshade, burdock (which was just ripe 

 enough to catch and cover you with its clinging burs), thistles, and agrimony. 

 My brother said " there's one of these yellow things/'' and sure enough about 

 half-way up was one of these Selene looking insects, I then said I must have 

 that to see what it is, and instructing my brother to mark the place I ran 

 along to a bridge and quickly crossing the canal climbed up, when half-way 

 towards it my brother shouted " it is off, up higher as fast as you can," so 

 away I scrambled up to the top, when it settled in a few yards enabling me 

 to get a view. " By Jove ! its Edusa ! mark him well, I must have him." Just 

 as my net is nearly over it, off it sailed to the very bottom. The canal pre- 

 vented my brother getting at it; he called me down, and away I scrambled 

 again and again, and had almost reached it when off it starts, again up the 

 hill and I after it. At last it settles near the top and I was soon within 



