105 Kotuni All day spent on the preparation of the good collections of plants made yesterday, and some leftovers from the previous day. Sawmill and logging gang natives, on their Sunday off, have been scouring the forests for mammals and herps. Three species new for the camp thus added to the collection: Pogonomyx, Pogonomelomys, and Syconycteris. Total species for the camp now stands at 29. Despite the weather, or perhaps because of it, several whites from Goroka have been fishing for rainbow trout in the creek. People in 4 vehicles drew up at the sawmill but no one came near us. Apparently the sole catch was one trout about a foot long. Monday, August 17. More bad weather. Mist filled the valley during the night and stayed until after 8 this a.m. Day completely overcast; intermittent smart showers from noon on. Went down to the Castanopsis forest again and this time crossed the creek and went some distance up the gully through the forest strip. The ground too rocky to cultivate, hence the survival of the forest. Again a number of plants collected which do not occur higher on the mountain to my knowledge. John, returning from the weekend in Goroka last night, brought four specimens of a brown beetle, about an inch long, which appears briefly at this time of year and is caught in quantity and eaten by the natives. So far as I can determine the appearance takes place only in the vicinity of Goroka, in the grassy Asaro Valley. The beetles appear in vast numbers from underground late in the afternoon (about 5:30 yesterday), fly to a height of 5-6 feet from the ground, mate, and return underground before dark. Some few remain and may be seen about lights at night. The natives cook the beetles lightly on the fire, or, these days in the town, fry them. The beetle swarm ended tennis on the Goroka courts yesterday afternoon. They were on the airport and all other open grassy places. Many natives collecting them. This was a day of milestones in the botany department: passed 300 numbers for this camp, 2000 numbers and 10,000 herbarium sheets for the trip. Tuesday, August 18. The overcast weather continues, but no rain fell today. For my last morning in the field at this camp I went up the northernmost logging road to its limit on the branck creek which flows into the water race, thence cut track to the crest of the spur, where there was another old logging road which I followed some distance, then back down the spur to the water race. A pretty good morning, the take including a big-flowered red Rhododendron new to the collection (a high epiphyte) and several minor canopy trees. Visibility was poor, and I was somewhat handicapped by a cold -- apparently one of those quick virus things which the boys brought back from their weekend in town. Wednesday, August 19. Collecting at this camp ended today. My total is 330 numbers of plants (about 50 over first expectations); 1650 herbarium sheets; 19 bryophytes. We would appear to have the first botanical collections from the upper levels of Mt. Otto. Unfortunately, the timber concession area has been too greatly disturbed to offer good collecting, and it is difficult to arrive at a conclusion as to what the forests may have been before they were so badly wrecked for lumber. Definitely established are the presence of subalpine forest, beech forest, mid-mountain Castanopsis forest, and mixed rain forest of montane type in the narrow valley of Tamahagi Creek.