KANDY—PERADENIYA 
363 
of the Thames and the Mahaweli-ganga; also by Dysdercus cingulatus , 
Fabr., a bug that varies much in size and colour, as its black spots 
may be placed on either a pale red or a grey ground; Graptostethus 
argentatus, Eabr., was found above the Reservoir; and the pale red 
Dindymus sita, Kirby, lurked under a stone; the dingy Brachyr- 
rhynchus memhranaceus , Fabr., is well adapted by its extreme flatness 
to its habitat under loose bark. Reduviids were to be had in some 
variety, the black and red Lophocephala guerini , Castel., was found 
on the road, it had apparently been injured and was unable to fly; 
Sphedanolestes nigro-ruber , Dohrn, which was netted on the wing, is 
evidently a scarce species, since Mr. Distant had never seen it before 
I showed it to him ; Coranus obscurus, Kirby, is featureless as its name 
implies; Conorrhinus rubrofasciatus, De Geer, is black with reddish 
marks; the dull coloured Petalochirus brachialis, Stal, being armed with 
spines on its shoulders and along the abdomen, ought to be treated 
with circumspection, for owing to the lack of it I pricked myself 
smartly. The black Sycanus collaris, Fabr., which has long thin 
antennae, flew briskly in the sunshine, making a sort of hum or 
buzz. 
Diptera were not very prominent, at all events I did not take 
many: an undetermined Musca ; a species of Idia ; Bhinia 
discolor , Fabr., the two last about the flowers of Wendlandia 
notoniana, Wall.; an undescribed species of Blepharipoda ; 
Sarcophaga sericea, Walk., and an undescribed Chaetodyga , which 
has a singularly raucous buzz. 
Two remarkable Whip-scorpions, ThelypJionus sp., must not be 
forgotten; I took them, one a little below, the other somewhat 
above the Reservoir, both under stones. They emit an extremely 
pungent odour of acetic acid (which however soon passes off in 
the cyanide-bottle), and the name Oxypoei is well applied to the 
group. 
The Royal Botanic Gardens at Peradeniya were by no means 
productive of insects, as regards either species or individuals, being, 
probably, too well kept; but I suspect that the well-known poverty 
of gardens as entomological hunting grounds is in the main due 
to the paucity of indigenous plants therein. One, all too small, 
portion of the garden is purposely kept in a more or less wild state, 
and this was the only place in the island in which I saw Danaida 
plexippus, Linn. ( genutia , Cram.). Close to Mr. Green’s laboratory I 
took Precis orithyia ; my only other Ceylon specimen of this common 
Indian butterfly was found on the road above the Reservoir at Kandy. 
Cyaniris puspa is another capture worth mentioning. The pretty 
