AGRIADES CORIDON VAR. CONSTANTI. 



61 



April 6kh to the day of my departure, the 19th, and, at this latter 

 date, this spring brood was probably not yet nearing its end, as the 

 specimens were still very fresh. As to the 5 s, I only took one 

 specimen in 190G, on April 6th, and it was worn, the rest were taken 

 between April 11th and 19th, 1908. The following are the distinctive 

 characters of this variety ; these characters are remarkably constant, 

 judging at any rate, by my series : 



Upperside : General ground tint less vivid and brilliant than in typical 

 A. coridon, this tint is slightly greyish ; if one places side by side two series 

 of A. coridon, the one of the ordinary form, the second of those from 

 Pardigon, those of the latter appear noticeably duller and more greyish. The 

 forewing generally shows a small black line, more or less well-marked, at the 

 extremity of the discoidal cell ; the grey marginal border is broad, and often shows 

 a series of dirty white lunules in its centre. The hindwing is ornamented along 

 its outer margin with eye-spots, which are generally complete, i.e., formed by a 

 large black point surrounded by a whitish ring, which is whiter in the part border- 

 ing the black point externally, and is generally blackish-grey internally. Under- 

 side : The ground colour, instead of being whitish as in the type, is grey, and of a 

 very marked grey, scarcely at all browner on the hindwings, whilst in the type the 

 two wings differ much from one another as a rule, the hindwing being yellowish, 

 the fo.ewing whitish. The margin of all the wings presents a complete series of 

 black points encircled by white, these eye-spots are on the hindwings surmounted 

 by orange lunules, bordered in turn internally with little black chevrons ; on the 

 fore wings the eye-spots are edged internally with chevrons of a dark grey, which 

 sometimes form a continuous blackish band. All the spots on the underside of 

 both wings are very large. 



These characters are, apart from the dull tint of the upperside and 

 the dark grey colouring of the underside, similar to those of var. 

 rezniceki, Bartel, which is distinguished by the discoidal mark of the 

 forewings and the large size of the eye-spots on the hindwings above, 

 and the large spotting beneath ; but while rezniceki is whiter beneath 

 than the type, the variety of Var is much greyer. The eye-spots on 

 the upperside of the hindwings are often in the 3 edged internally 

 with a little fulvous (ab. suavis, Schultz) ; I do not know if this form 

 of aberration occurs in rezniceki. The variety which 1 have just 

 described shows a tendency to the increase of the black pigment, and 

 the presence on the underside of the <? s of additional black spots 

 is frequent; of the 92 ^ s which I possess, apart from one ab. 

 biarctiata and one ab. radiata, 12 specimens have these additional 

 spots, one of these specimens has no fewer than 11 of them. In the 

 2 s I do not find any special characters so accentuated as in the 

 ^ s, but of these I only possess 12 ; the only thing that strikes me 

 is the darker coloration of the underside and the less marked difference 

 in tint between the fore- and hindwing than is the case in other races. 



In any case, the characters of the S s seem to me so distinctive and 

 so constant as to indicate that we have to do with a variety which 

 deserves to be distinguished. In remembrance of the entomologist 

 who first studied it, I name it " var. conManti gen. praecox." 



As Mr. Wheeler supposes, it is very probable that, in the localities 

 where this variety flies, A. coritlnn may have three broods in the year. 

 Further, if in Switzerland it has only one, it has two at Mentoue, as 

 I am informed by M. Balestre. 



