480 Mr. Edward Doubleday's Remarks on the Genus Arg-ynnis. 



rank which the species hold in the true system of nature, and partly on their 

 economy. 



It is not my intention now to follow out this theory further than so far as it 

 applies to the Lepidoptera, more especially to the Rhopalocerous ones. 1 hope 

 at some future time to enter fully into all its details. 



The three upper nervures exist in the anterior wings of a large portion of . 

 the Heterocera, but the lowest or discoidal one is often wanting, though its 

 nervules remain ; in the Rhopalocera it is always wanting, and its nervules are 

 united either to the subcostal or median nervures. 



I must here refer to M. Lefebvre's third plate, where these nervules are the 

 first superior and first inferior of figure 1, the first superior and first branch 

 of the second superior in figure 3, and the first and second superior in figures 

 4 to "J- It will be seen at figure 5, which represents the wing of Hyades Jai- 

 rus, that these nervules are united to the median by a curved disco-cellular 

 nervure, but have no connexion whatever with the subcostal. In Heliconia. 

 Melpomene (fig. 6.) a short disco-cellular also unites them to the subcostal, and 

 in Vanessa Larinia (fig. 3.) they are quite separated from the median, but 

 united by a very short disco-cellular to the subcostal. In Pap'dio the upper of 

 these nervules springs from the middle of the first portion of the disco-cellular ; 

 the other is united to the median by a continuation of the disco-cellular, which 

 makes an angle with its upper portion, and has always been considered to be 

 a part of the median ; whence Jones and subsequent writers have stated that 

 the true Equites or Papilionidce had four branches to that nervure. 



I must now refer more particularly to Heliconia Selene (fig. 7-)- These ner- 

 vules are there connected with both the median and subcostal, and from the 

 transverse part, which M. Lefebvre would consider part of the disco-cellular, 

 spring two short nervules, pointing inwards, and becoming gradually oblite- 

 rated. These exist also in Danaus and some other genera, and it is surprising 

 that they did not lead M. Lefebvre to suspect that they indicated a connexion 

 with his discoidal nervure. 



It is amongst the Heterocera that we must look for the normal state of the 

 discoidal nervure. In these we find it sometimes a nervure of nearly equal 

 solidity with the median or subcostal, but in others it appears to be only a 

 tube of the same texture as the membrane of the wing; and then we find it 



