THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES OF THE PLAINS OF INDIA. 449 



surface much flattened. Surface very finely rugose, shining, covered with very 

 minute, white tubercles. Spiracles of segment 2 linear with thin, slightly raised 

 edges ; the rest conspicuous, slightly raised, oval, light in colour. The colour 

 of the pupa is very dark brown, smudged and speckled with blackish as a rule ; 

 but it may be more or less pure, light brown; wings generally lighter. 

 L: 18*25 mm. ; B: 7 mm.; H: 6-5 mm. 



Habits. — The eggs are laid, always singly but often two or three on 

 the same plant and often on adjacent leaves, on the upper surfaces of 

 the leaves or on a stalk. From the time the larva emerges it is attended 

 assiduously by red ants {(EcoyhyUa smaragdina) which even stick 

 to the pupa. The larva is very slow in its movements, lives nearly 

 always on the underside of a leaf, lying along a vein or the midrib 

 when small, when big maldng a loose house or cell for itself by drawing 

 portions of a leaf together. It feeds exclusively on young leaves. 

 The pupa often keeps to the cell thus made and is attached strongly 

 by the tail and a body-band. It has the power of moving from the 

 base of the " hoof " and, by knocking with its body against the leaf- 

 surface rapidly, is capable of producing quite an audible noise. The 

 butterfly appears about a month after the egg that produced it was 

 laid. It generally emerges in the early morning but, in dull weather, 

 rather later. It is an insect of powerful flight as might be assumed 

 from the robust thorax. But it never flies far though its movements 

 are excessively rapid ; one sees just a glance of brilliant blue in the 

 sunHght and it is gone. It is somewhat slow in getting up, unwilUng, 

 that is, to take to the wing ; it j)itches suddenly amongst the foliage 

 a little further on and disapj^ears. It walks about slowly on leaves, 

 under and over, on stalks, twigs, &c. It occasionally basks in the 

 hot sun with the wings partially opened exposing the extraordinarily 

 brilliant upper surface which, in certain lights, positively scentillates 

 with exuberance of colour. Ordinarily, when resting, the wings are 

 kept closed over the back and the colour of the underside blends 

 well with the surrounding lights and shades so as to make it difficult 

 to spot a quiescent insect. The species is very plentiful on the im- 

 mediate coast of Kanara in Bombay and the larvas can be obtained 

 in the monsoon months in large numbers if one knows where to look 

 for them. It is a thoroughly jungle insect, found in places where the 

 rainfall is heavy and, perhaps, there, preferring the dense, creeper- 

 infested, damaged scrub with scattered high trees to the really good 

 forest. It never goes to flowers but has been noticed sucking sap 

 from a wounded tree-trunk and also sucking moisture from the 

 groimd. It is difficult to catch because of its very rapid, dodging 

 flight and the nature of the places it frequents. It is rarely seen except 

 amongst foliage. The plants upon which the larvae have been found 

 are Terminalia tomentosa, faniculata {ComhretacecB), Lagcrstrcemia 

 microcar'pa {Ly(hracece), Xylia dolahrifurmis {Leguminosece). Its 

 habitat is the Eastern Himalayas, Assam, Burma, the Malay Peninsula, 

 Siam, Nias Island, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, the Andamans, Ceylon 



