484 
AUSTRALIA 
gave me a specimen of the fine buff-coloured Australian Lymantriid, 
Colussa excisa , Walk., a male, which she had found in the house. 
Acting on the advice of Mr. G. A. Waterhouse, B.Sc., I made 
two expeditions by rail to Como on the south bank of the River 
Georges, a well-known suburban locality, about twelve miles SS.W. 
of Sydney, not very far from the spot where Banks made his 
collection, which was afterwards named by Fabricius, so that it is 
not surprising that many of my captures were of Fabrician species. 
To wander in the Australian bush, where the Gum-tree has its 
home, was a new experience, but I wish it had been earlier in the 
year. It was soon evident that the prevailing butterflies were 
Satyrines and Hesperids. The large Heteronympha merope was quite 
common, it is more wary than is usual with Satyrs, and somewhat 
swift of flight. Curiously enough I saw at Como nothing but females, 
just as at Hobart, ten weeks previously, I had seen nothing but 
males; moreover so unlike are the two sexes that I had no idea that 
they were one species. It is remarkable that the female of m&rope has 
a distinct sweet scent of the Philadelphus type. Perhaps the com¬ 
monest butterfly was Hypocysta irius , Fabr. {adiante, Hiibn.), but of its 
congeners, II. antirius , Butl., and II. euphemia , Dbl. & H., I took 
but one each. Xenica ackanta , Don., a very golden-looking insect 
on the wing, was suggestive of P. megaera ; unfortunately, though 
common, it was in poor condition. Hear the railway station I picked 
up a couple of Yphthima arctous , Fabr., which took my thoughts back 
to India. 
Precis velleda was somewhat common, but I did not see any other 
Hy mphalines. 
The only Danaine was a female Danaida archippus, Fabr. 
(plexippus , auct. nec Linn.). 1 
Theclinesthes (. Nacaduba , Utica) onycha , Hew., Nacaduba biocell- 
ata f Feld., and Zizera labradus were all the Blues that I took, and 
judging from their condition the family was about over. At Como 
I saw but one Pierine species, but that a notable one; the male 
of Delias nigrina, Fabr. (the only sex that I secured) is white above, 
black beneath, a startling colour scheme. A fair number were seen 
flying about the flowers of a tall gum-tree, but they rarely con¬ 
descended to come down. 2 
Skippers, as has been said, were much in evidence, affording a 
marked contrast to Hew Zealand, where they are unknown. Of the 
brilliant tawny Telicota augias 9 Linn., which occurs throughout the 
1 Mr. G. A. Waterhouse calls this megalippe, Hiibn. 
2 See below, p. 535. 
