434 
Mr. J. J. Walker on 
by Donovan, ninety years ago, of tlie insects of South 
China, as we know now ; and there is perhaps hardly 
another place in the world of equal interest and with 
half the facilities for travel, which has been so much 
neglected by naturalists/^ 
Since the above was written, fourteen years ago, the 
only contribution to our knowledge of the subject, so 
far as the present writer knows, is a list of 116 species 
of Bhopalocera, with brief notes on their distribution and 
habits, compiled by himself and Mr. S. B. J. Skertchly, 
r.G.S. This list was published as an appendix to a little 
work by Mr. Skertchly on the geology and natural 
history of Hong-Kong ^ Our Island.^' Hong-Kong : 
Kelly and Walsh, 1 893). Owing to our want of books of 
reference and other means of identifying the species, this 
list, which was merely a provisional one intended chiefly for 
local use, contains several serious errors. The present 
paper, which has been undertaken at the suggestion of 
Mr. Elwes, will, I hope, form a useful basis for a more 
complete knowledge of the Lepidopterous insects of this 
interesting island. 
My experience of collecting in Hong-Kong dates from 
the middle of December, 1891, when I arrived here from 
North-west Australia and the Moluccas in H.M. surveying 
ship, Penguin.-'^ We left on April 4th of the following 
year for the survey of the Macclesfield Bank in the China 
Sea, and after a brief visit to Hong-Kong early in May, 
proceeded to the Chusan Islands. On the 12fch Decem- 
ber, 1892, the Penguin again arrived at Hong-Kong, 
and I remained here until I left for England in H.M.S. 
Tyne/' on May 20th, 1893. This is perhaps a fitting 
place to acknowledge the cordial assistance and en- 
couragement in my natural history pursuits extended to 
me throughout the entire commission of H.M.S. " Pen- 
guin,^^ by my commanding officer. Captain W. U. Moore, 
E.N., F.E.G.S. Through his kindness I was enabled to 
utilize to the greatest advantage, such spare time as the 
duties of the chief engineer of a surveying ship left me 
to devote to those of a volunteer naturalist, on the many 
remote and little-known shores visited during the Pen- 
guin's " voyage. 
The island of Hong-Kong lies just within the Tropic 
of Cancer (the position of the capital, Victoria, being in 
lat. 22^ 9' N. and long. 114° 10' E.), and is one of the 
