Page:The Zoologist, 1st series, vol 4 (1846).djvu/276

1442 coloured variety (the C. Helice, of Haworth), which I had not previously met with in this island. — William Arnold Bromfield; Ryde, Isle of Wight, October 30, 1845.

On the periodic appearance of Colias Edusa at Charmouth, Dorset.—The subject of the periodic appearance of certain insects is one of great curiosity and interest; it is also one of much difficulty, and a vast mass of evidence should be collected before any- thing like absolute conclusions should be drawn or positive assertions made. It will cause me much pleasure if the following rough, and I much regret to add, imperfect notes shall tend, in however slight a manner, to increase the amount of statistics ab- solutely essential for arriving at any definite result in the case of the insect above- named. I may state that I have known the locality for nearly twenty years, and cer- tainly very few of those years have passed without some specimens having either been seen or captured. One year they will appear in profusion, and then for several years they will only be seen in small and variable numbers, and then again they will show themselves in great abundance. I much regret that I have not kept notes of all these appearances in that locality, as some useful result might then have been arrived at, by the observations extending over so many years. Before commencing the dates of its occurrence at Charmouth, I will just state that one of my brothers captured a single specimen near Worcester in 1825, where it was considered at that time a rarity. The first time I captured Colias Edusa at Charmouth, was in September, 1826, and it was then in very great abundance. The next note I have of its appearance is in 1833 in September. The next is the 2nd of October in 1835, but in limited numbers. Then in 1836 from the end of August to the middle of September I took twenty-three spe- cimens. In 1844 one of my brothers took and saw a very considerable number ; and this present year I was there the last week in August and the first in September and saw one or two specimens, but my brother had seen some more, probably a dozen, about ten days previously. For the last ten years I have been only very occasionally at Charmouth, but I know that specimens have been taken in greater or less abund- ance almost every year, though I have no positive note of the fact. I have with some little trouble drawn out a table with all the dates of its occurrence since 1804 to the present time that I could collect, but I have been unable to fix upon any series of years in which it has been particularly and generally abundant. I have obtained ne- gative as well as positive evidence to some extent, but am at present unable to lay down any rule as to the probable time of its appearance. I shall, however, endeavour to enlarge the number of data, and should I be able from them to arrive at any cer- tain conclusions, I will not fail to record them in the pages of the 'Zoologist.'—Beverley R. Morris; Beverley, December 30th, 1845.

Extraordinary migration of Butterflies.—As instances of the migration of butter- flies are not I believe of very common occurrence, the following notice of the invasion of the Kentish coast by a vast flight of the garden white butterfly from France, may be worthy of notice. On the 7th of July (Tuesday) I was surprised at the very unusual number of white butterflies which appeared in our garden here, and in order to pro- tect the rising generation of cabbages and broccoli, I commenced an attack upon them with my net. In about an hour I killed upwards of a hundred, but this not appearing to materially decrease their numbers, I desisted from the work of destruction. The next day they were as numerous, and I began to suspect that they had migrated hither, as it was difficult to account for so simultaneous an escape from the chrysalis state of so vast a number in our immediate neighbourhood. I have since been informed that on Sunday the 5th of July, an extraordinary flight of white butterflies arrived at