THE YOUNG NATUKALIST. 



269 



insect. 



Habitat. — Clover and lucern fields, rail- 

 way embankments and similar places. Very 

 uncertain in appearance ; though taken every 

 year in the South of England, it only occurs 

 in the North singly, or at very rare intervals. 

 In 1877 it appeared simultaneously all over | 

 England as well as in the more Southern 

 Counties of Scotland. It has an extensive 

 range over Europe. In Asia it occurs from 

 Siberia to Persia, and also in the North-west 

 of Africa. 



Variation.— This species, like Hyale, 

 varies much in the width of the black border, 

 and sometimes the fore wing is suffused with 

 black scales as far as the disc spot, PI. 3, 

 Fig. ia, which is taken from a specimen in 

 the collection of Mr. H. T. Mennell. The 

 disc spot on the hind wing is sometimes pale 

 yellow instead of orange. The wings also 

 vary very much in depth of color. A variety 

 of the female occurs, called Helice, Hub. It is 

 much paler yellow, but otherwise resembles 

 the normal form of the female. The disc 

 spot on the hind wing varies in color in the 

 variety as in the type. Specimens some- 

 times occur with one, two, or even three 

 wings, Helice and the other Edusa. Chrvso- 

 theuie, Stepn. is a pale yellow variety, inter- 

 mediate between Edusa and Helice, and 

 figured as distinct by Stephens, who believed 

 it to be the continental Chrysotheme of Esper. 

 Myrmidone, Hump and West is also a variety 

 differing in hue and figured by these authors 

 as a British example of the Continental 

 Myrmidone, Esp. Helena, H.S. a Continental 

 form is considered merely an accidental 

 variety by Dr. Standinger. We name 

 these here, that we may record all we know 

 about the species, but do not consider any of 

 the varieties but Helice, are distinct enough to 

 deserve a distmguifhing name. 



Allied Species. — The Continental Myr- 

 midone, Esp. is very like Edusa, but rather less, 

 and of a deeper orange. The black border 

 1 is rather narrower, and the veins are not 



orange through it in the male. Several other 

 species are very similar, in fact the whole of 

 the genus is much alike, and even the larvae 

 closely resemble one another, being generally 

 green with paler stripes. 



Parasites. —None known to us. 



In Kirby's Catalogue of Diurnal Lepidop- 

 tera, this species is called Croccus, Foura 1785. 

 Edusa, Fab. 17S7 giving the former name 

 priority. We have retained that generally 

 used. 



A FEW WORDS ABOUT 

 GEOLOGY. 



By C. H. H. Walker, Liverpool. 

 Concluded from page 248. 



There is yet one more very expeditious way 

 of collecting, more especially in the neigh- 

 bourhood of large towns. This is by examin- 

 ing the heaps of stones broken up for the 

 purpose of paving. Frequently they are 

 made up of a vast variety of rocks and 

 minerals, of which a specimen of each should 

 be taken. Quartz, felspar, mica -schist, gneiss, 

 asbestos, granitic rocks, basalt, and volcanic lava 

 are commonly found. At other times they 

 consist of limestone, and being ready broken, 

 the fossils (when there are any) are very 

 easily detected. A short time ago, the path- 

 ways in Sefton Park, situated on the outskirts 

 of Liverpool, were paved with a pale pink 

 limestone. It (the limestone) swarmed with 

 fossils. Terebratula, Spirifera, Productus, Enom- 

 phalus, and dozens of others, together with 

 Encrinital Stems, could be picked up ad 

 infinitum, some of the shells being as large as 

 a tennis-ball. Corals were there in profu- 

 sion, and as many of them could be easily 

 broken out of the stone, there shape could be 

 exhibited to perfection. 



But, alas ! for those who for a brief period 

 benefitted from this El Dorado. Rollers 



