fioNE8 : In the Tropics. 



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of the open spaces. They are, in fact, essentially forest creatures, and 

 are rarely met with in the plains away from their home in the woods. 

 Numbers of clear- winged moths and allied species will be found accom- 

 panying the butterflies in their morning meal, and vieing with them in 

 the brilliancy of their colouring. One group of these which seem to 

 represent our burnets, contains the most dazzlingly beautiful little 

 creatures — perfect gems, in fact — that glow with ever-varying tint as 

 they move and change the angle of the reflected light that flashes 

 from their wings. Some of them almost appear as if they had 

 been dipped in the pigments of some evanescent rainbow, and 

 varnished over with the dew before the colours had time to depart, so 

 brilliant are their tints. 



Tearing ourselves away from the rich harvest of this feeding ground, 

 we proceed along the sandy road, being met at every step by swarms 

 of gaily-coloured butterflies ; on the open spots where the banks are 

 dried and parched by the already powerful rays of the sun, we shall 

 make many good captures. Pyrameis, reminding us of our own painted 

 lady ; Jvnmda with its lovely peacock ej^es, and many species of blues, 

 hairstreaks and skippers. Of the latter group, there appears to be no 

 end to the species, and indeed, I have rarely had a good day's hunt 

 without being rewarded by one or two new species ; and these are, 

 many of them, very difl"erent from the tiny dull skippers we are 

 accustomed to at home. Here we find a giant, two inches and three 

 quarters in expanse, of a beautiful greenish black, with a white fringe 

 round the edges of the wings. There we see a robust specimen, with 

 three light brown velvet patches on the wings. Feeding on that purple 

 flower are several yellow and black ones, with crimson head and tail. 

 By the side of the stream we are about to cross, we shall start off 

 dozens of different kinds, all drinking on the wet sand, and some of 

 them gay with metallic sheen, and brilliant colouring, blue, yellow, 

 and red, and all adding by their merry and sprightly flight to the 

 beauty of the scene. Within the woods the smaller and more sombre- 

 coloured skippers delight to fly, generally having a favourite spot to 

 which they return again and again, after a little game at hide and seek 

 with their friends. But even among these, many are adorned with 

 colours not to be found in our English groups. To give some idea of 

 the abundance of the skippers, I may state that I have collected over 

 120 species, within a radius of eight miles from San Paulo, nearly 

 twice the number of all the British butterflies together. Some of them 

 seem fully up to the humour of a practical joke, and delight to wait 

 on the surface of some great sun-lit leaf, and suddenly dart out at a 



