THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 163 



CORRESPONDENCE. 



PARNASSIUS CLODIUS AND P. SMINTHEUS. 



Sir, — Good specimens of these species are generally easily separated, 

 but occasionally specimens are taken the identity of which it is difficult 

 to decide. Mr. C de Blois-Green, of Victoria, B. C, who has taken both 

 specimens in large numbers, has drawn my attention to a character which 

 he finds reliable in all instances. This is that in Clodius the antennae are 

 uniformly black, whilst in Smintheus they are ringed with white. Of 

 course, when the abdominal pouch is attached, there is no difficulty in 

 separating the female of Clodius with its large pouch from Smintheus 

 with its small keel-shaped appendage. The value of these abdominal 

 pouches has been well-worked out by Mr. H. J. Elwes in an exhaustive 

 paper published in the Transactions of the Entomological Society of 

 London. Some specimens received from Mr. de Blois-Green were sent 

 to Dr. H. Strecker, and his opinion asked as to the value of the character 

 based on the colour of the antennas. His reply, which I think will be 

 read with interest by lepidopterists, is as follows : — 



" Your letter and the remnants of the Pamassius received. The lat- 

 ter are only Clodius, of the form found in the State of Washington and 

 western British Columbia ; those further south (California) are not as 

 large nor as brightly coloured, as a general thing. Your correspondent 

 is right in laying stress on the black antennae. Clodius belongs to a 

 group and is allied to some sub-group having black antennas and large 

 pouches. They embrace Nordmaimi, from Armenia ; Clarius, from YV. 

 Siberia ; Eversmanui, from Alaska and Siberia ; Felderi, the Amoor ; 

 Mnemosyne, Germany and Switzerland, etc.; Stubendorfii, Siberia ; and 

 Glacialis, Japan ; whereas Smintheus has white-ringed antennae, and its 

 allies, distinguished further by the keel-shaped pouch, are Apollo, Ger- 

 many ; Hesebolus, Mongolia, etc. ; Nomion, Siberia ; Jacquemonti, Him- 

 alayahs, etc., with white-ringed antennae also ; but there are sub-groups 

 allied to these with the same keel-like pouch as Apollinus, Tartary ; 

 Honrathi, Turkestan, etc., that have all black antennae, so there is no 

 rule without an exception. Our Pamassius, according to my views, are 

 but three species : — 



i. Smintheus, Dbldy — Hew. 



2. Clodius, Men. 



3. Eversmanui, Men. 



