THE VALUE OF RARE BRITISH BUTTERFLIES. 
iS9 
^4/9/- each ; the lowest price, which was for a “ poor” specimen 
was £2/10/-, and the highest £6/10/- ; if this continues, in a few 
years £10 will scarcely purchase a type; yet, less than half a 
century ago this species could be purchased at 1/-. each! The 
very rare “ mazarine blue” (Polyommatus acts), now extinct or very 
nearly so, fetched about 10/-each. All the above were sold by 
Mr. Stevens, at his auction rooms, King Street, C'ovent Garden, 
w.c., and are a few instances of the current market value of 
“ rarities ” and “ varieties ” among British lepidopterists. Before 
closing this article, I will give an instance of an entomological 
note which I noticed some time ago in a popular “penny weekly,” 
which stated that recently in New York, a specimen of an extinct 
butterfly was sold for 1,500 dollars (^312/10/-) ! 
In a future number of this magazine, I hope to be able to give 
a few instances of the prices, some of our rare moths have realised 
“ under the hammer.” 
COLEOPTERA AT CAMBER. 
On one of the sunniest mornings in March last a collecto r 
friend and myself started off for the famous beetling ground o^ 
Camber. I will mention at once that we did not touch the sand 
hills, but kept entirely to the marshes. By the way, that ever 
increasing body, the golfers, with their concomitant evil, the 
parasitic “ caddy,” have swooped down in full force upon the 
delightful old hills, and I fear the same must happen as in the 
case of the Deal sand hills and other localities, where rare and 
local Coleoptera were made still rarer or wholly exterminated by 
the invasions of the golfing fraternity. After leaving the train 
which brought us from Hastings, we had a pleasant two mile 
walk across the far extending marshes. The first halt was then 
made at a ditch, the water net was fitted up and thrust into the 
water. Having hauled it out we found among its slimy contents 
the first captures of the day, viz., Laccobius bipunctatus , Philhy- 
drus testaceus, Hyphydrus ovatus, Haliplus cinereus , Helophorus 
aquaticus, Noterus sparsus, Hydrobiiis fuscipes , etc. At this ditch 
we also took six species of Hydroporus ; H.angustatus, H. incequa- 
lis, H. palustris , H. lineatus , H. mdanocephalus , and one uncertain. 
We next went to work on old fences, much to the dismay of the 
irate landowner, with whom we had to make our peace later on. 
But notwithstanding this somewhat unpleasant incident, we were 
perfectly happy, foi it was in these fences that we discovered the 
much looked for Ptinusgermanus in by no means small numbers. 
This insect was by far the best capture made during the day. By 
the same method of collecting we took Corccidula seutellata, 
Phalacrus corruseus, Mecinus pyrdster, Dromius \-notatus , and 
