ot read it in that
periodical. It is from the pen of Mr. E. C. F. Jenkins, of Sleaford,
Lincolnshire. He writes: "I proceed to give you some account of my own
acquaintance with that most beautiful insect, which, some thirty years ago,
was so abundant in the unreclaimed fens about Whittlesea Mere, that I never
expected to hear of its utter extermination. Its brilliant appearance on
the wing in the sunshine I shall never forget, and to watch it sitting on
{149} the flower of the _Eupatorium cannabinum_ and show the under sides of
its wings, was something ever to be remembered. I once took sixteen in
about half an hour on one particular spot, where the above-mentioned plant
was very plentiful; but unless the sun was very bright they were very
difficult to find. In those days the larva was unknown, and I attribute the
disappearance of the butterfly to the discovery of the larva, to the
unceasing attacks of collectors, and to the burning of the surface-growth
of the fens, which is done in dry weather when they are to be reclaimed."

The two sexes of this butterfly differ very remarkably in the appearance of
the upper surface. This, in the _male_, is of an effulgent coppery colour,
narrowly bordered with black, and having a black mark in the centre of each
wing. The _female_ is larger, has a redder tinge, with a row of black spots
on the front wings, and the hind wings nearly covered with black, excepting
a band of coppery red near the margin, extending also more or less
distinctly along the courses of the veins. Underneath, both sexes are
nearly alike, the hind wing of a general _light blue tint_, with a red band
near the margin, and spotted with black.

The _caterpillar_ is green, darker on the back, and paler at the sides, it
feeds on the water dock.

The _butterfly_ used to be found in July and August, being formerly
especially abundant about Yaxley and Whittlesea Mere, and has been taken
also at Benacre, Suffolk; and Bardolph Fen, Norfolk. {150}

Various reports of its capture, during the last two or three years, have
been published; but they all seem to require confirmation.

This butterfly is now generally considered to be a _large_ local variety of
the continental one called _Hippothoe_, with which it closely agrees in its
markings.

* * * * *

THE BLUES. (Genus _Polyommatus_.)

We now arrive at a numerous genus of elegant and lively little insects,
collectively known as the "Blu