Immigration into britain of continental butterflies

ABSTRACT August 1947 was marked by the large-scale immigration of certain Continental butterflies which are infrequent visitors in the British Isles. Most striking was the extensive arrival

of the clouded yellow (_Colias croceus_ Fourcrory), which ranged from southern England to Scotland, and included specimens of the pale greenish-white female variety _helice_, and a few of

the scarcer pale clouded yellow (_Colias hyales_ Linn.). Even more interesting was the appearance in the north of England of the Camberwell beauty (_Nymphalis antiopa_, Linn.) after an

absence of many years. At a meeting of the Merseyside Naturalists' Association on August 24, A. J. Cobham reported the appearance of this insect at Maghull, Lancashire, the previous

week, and afterwards a specimen was caught at Birkenhead, Cheshire. This insect migrates across the North Sea from its haunts in northern Europe, from Scandinavia to Germany and Holland,

whereas the clouded yellow's migration route is from North Africa across France. 1941 was the last notable ‘clouded yellow’ year, the greatest immigration since 1877, while 1917 was

remarkable for Camberwell beauties: the Camberwell beauty was first recorded in Cool Arbour Lane, Camberwell, London, in August 1748. There has also been a marked invasion of death's

head hawk moths (_Acherontia atropos_ Linn.) in the north of England, and numerous larvæ of these Continental moths were found in potato fields during August. Access through your institution

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and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Immigration into Britain of Continental Butterflies. _Nature_ 160, 359 (1947). https://doi.org/10.1038/160359b0 Download citation * Issue

Date: 13 September 1947 * DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/160359b0 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: Get shareable link Sorry, a

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