S. Mahunka szerk.: Folia Entomologica Hungarica 28/2. (Budapest, 1975)
volution, at a time when the economic situation of the country and that of the Kabul University was at a low point. Owing to this fact the Kabul University was unable to provide a car for longer collecting trips. Nevertheless, on five occasions I was lucky enough to go on one-day trips into the country. Thus my collectings concentrated around Kabul and its environs (University Park: Aliabad, Darulaman, Tshelsotun, Tsheheltan, Kotal-e Khair-khana, Pule Charkhi) and also some way off (Paghman Mountains: Paghman, Estalef). These localities are partly cultivated or overgrazed by grazing animals. Some fifty per cent of the material originates from *;he 50 km environs of Kabul. I feel bound to stress that while the material of all the other animal groups is poor in species, in the University Park, Paghman, and in some other localities Diptera were numerous and very versatile. On the bank of Kabul River and on the shore of Bini He sar Lake mud treading was especially successful as far as beetles were concerned. In two occasions I had the opportunity to visit Jalalabad and its environs in a university car. In Daste Gamberay we placed out 9 soil traps baited with meat in a rather desolate-looking semi-desert, dry gully. All have disappeared by the next time we went to collect them. The animal life of the semi-desert is not rich, nevertheless, it is very versatile. It was especially interesting for me to see Chironomidae in large numbers which in all probability had developed in the waters of Bande Darunta lying several kilometres off. Jalalabad and its environs have much like an Indian climate, by this sharply differing from the rest of Afghanistan . Here even in winter there is no frost and from the end of April the temperature frequently rises above 40 °C (to 48 °C). Near the formerly Royal Park, in another park, where palms, wild fig-trees and orange-trees were mixed with luxurious subtropical vegetation, on both occasions we collected a vast number of insects with a very good species distribution. On our return route we have stopped at several places in the valley of River Kabul, like in Tangi Garoo, and for a few minutes collected intensively. On another two occasions south-east of Gardez passing through the valley of Logar and the Pass of Kotal Tera we drove to the forest region of Paktya. The easternmost regions of Afghanistan are under the influence of the monsoon from India which significantly raises the annual precipitation. This much supports the development of sparse woods, primarily that of pineries. In such a sparse pine-cedar-thuya wood, in a valley with steep sides I have placed out 8 soil traps, of which 6 were intact when next time I visited the place. The material was not rich but very valuable. (In other three localities I placed out soil traps: near Paghman and Estalef and in a semi-desert in Logar Province. These soil traps brought in extremely valuable results, thus, in the future the collectors will have to undertake the risk that only a part of the traps will be in situ even only one week after deposition. Out of the 37 soil traps only 15 were recovered, the others disappeared entirely.) On the way back with a sweeping net I collected on the slopes of the Kotal Tera and in the valley of Logar. On one occasion we visited in a car the semi-desert of Daste Moqur in Ghazni Province. Originally our plan was to reach a salt lake named Ab-Estadah, but our Af ghan guide lost his way and we ran short of time. But to make the best out of things we collected around the opening of subterranean canals (karéz) and on the banks of these waters, where we secured some very useful Diptera and Hymenoptera material, this was mainly because when we were there (beginning of June) the whole area was entirely dry.
