Zoohy;/.] NATURAL HISTORY OF VICTORIA. \_Insects. 



Plate 10. 

 PIERIS (THYCA) AGANIPPE (Don. sp.). 



[Genus PIERIS (Boisd.). (Sub-kingd. Articulata. Class Insecta. Order Lepidoptera. 

 Section Rhopalocera. Fam. Pierida;.) 



Gen. Char. — Larva cylindrical, moderately elongated, tapering towards both ends, covered 

 with scattered small hairs, slightly granular. Head small, rounded. Pupa angulated, slightly 

 compressed, sometimes tuberculated, terminating anteriorly in a slender projection ; attached 

 by the tail and a transverse silk line at various inclinations from horizontal to nearly vertical. 

 Imago: Head small, hairy, eyes moderate. Palpi rather longer than the head, slightly com- 

 pressed, clothed with long stiff hairs ; the last joint slender, scaly, about as long as the second. 

 Antennse of moderate length, with an obconic club usually compressed. Thorax moderate, 

 clothed with long hairs. Anterior wings subtriangular ; subcostal nerves from 2 to 4, 

 branched, upper discoidal nerve united to the subcostal for some distance beyond the cell. 

 Posterior wings obovate, discoidal nerve forming a third median nerve, inner margin forming 

 a very distinct channel for the reception of the abdomen. Legs moderate ; claws deeply bifid. 

 Paronychia shorter, broad, subtriangular ; pulvillus as long as the claws, jointed. Abdomen 

 rather slender, shorter than the posterior wings. 



Sub-genus T/ii/ca (Wallengren). Only one subcostal nerve given off before the end of the 

 cell, the first being absent. Larva with moderately long scattered hairs. Pupa very spinous 

 along the ventral surface.] 



Description. — Ifale : — Anterior wings: above bluish-white, with a black 

 moderately wide border, reaching- the posterior margin, and divided by a series of 

 about seven or eight irregularly ovate bluish-white spots ; anterior edge black ; a 

 black spot near distal end of discoidal cell, having a large bluish- white spot within it, 

 separated by about its own diameter from the black of the border ; under side nearly 

 like the upper, but two or three of the spots near the tip are rich dark-yellow, and 

 the white near costal margin is tinged with yellow, and there is a black spot near 

 the middle of the inner margin, not seen on the upper surface. Posterior wings : 

 above bluish-white, with a moderately wide black border ending in a point a little 

 beyond the angle ; about six large white marginal spots, the anterior three of which 

 only are surrounded with the black at their inner edge ; under side black, with a row 

 of six or seven ovate white spots round the margin, each with a dash of pale reddish ; 

 a broad irregularly interrupted yellowish-white band in the middle, and a spot of 

 vermilion-red at the base; thorax and abdomen greyish-white; a spot of rich yellow 

 near middle of aQterior margin, a larger patch along the ventral margin, and two or 

 three small ones near middle of wings of same rich dark-yellow; width from tip to 

 tip about 2^ inches ; margin ^ of an inch more or less. 



I'emale:—Antenov wings : above pale yellowish-white, with the black border much 

 wider than in the male, with the discoidal spot much larger and confluent with the 

 black of the border below, and the enclosed white spots larger ; one rounded black 

 spot near middle of posterior or abdominal margin, and a narrow oblong one between 

 it and the discoid spot; under side like the upper, but the three spots near the apex 

 rich yellow and the white near the anterior margin tinged with yellow. Posterior 

 wings : above yellowish-white, marked as in the male, but the black border wider 

 and the spots larger and tinged with reddish at the outer part, leaving the inner 

 crescentic edge conspicuously whiter ; under side nearly as in the male, but a spot 

 of vermilion red at base, an oval vermilion spot on outer part of each marginal spot 

 leaving the crescentic white inner edge of each spot very conspicuous ; a spot near 

 middle of anterior margin, three small ones near the middle of wing, and a larger 

 patch along the abdominal edge, rich yellow. Body as in male in color; width 

 from tip to tip, about 2| to 34 inches. 



[37] 



