l38 THE entomologist's EECORD. 



latter being, probably, the most intiuential factor of all. It may 

 be interesting to trace the application of these principles in two 

 or three illustrative examples taken from our l:)utterflies. Lyccena alsvs 

 is an illustration of the first of them. Alsus is a Vienna Cataloijue name, 

 (177(i.) The insect is described imder that name b}' Fahricius, in 1787, 

 and has generally received the same name from succeeding authors. 

 Fuessli, however, a bookseller and pulilisher of Zurich, had accurately 

 described the insect in 1775 under the name of minimus in a Catalogue of 

 Swiss insects, and Esper adopts this name, which is indubital)ly the 

 earlier of the two, and is quoted as a synonym by Haworth. Uesperia 

 linea illustrates the resuscitation of Hufnagel. Linea is also a Vienna 

 Catalogue name, vouched for by Fabricius, and adopted by Hiil)nerand 

 later writers. Hufnagel, however, liad described the insect imperfectly 

 in 176G under the name of thaumas, but Kottemburg, in 1775, by his 

 notes, makes the identification certain. Esper and Borkhausen adopt 

 Hufnagel's name, which is also used by Lewin, in 1795, and was known 

 to Hawortli. There is some doul)t wliether Poda had not described the 

 same insect under the name of sylrestris, in 1761. Fabricius, Esi)er, and 

 Kottemburg Avere of that opinion, l)ut tlie descri])tion is hardly full 

 enough for identification, and neitlier Staudinger nor Kirby accept it. 

 Lyaena adonis furnishes an illustration of the resuscitation of Kottem- 

 burg, and also an instance Avliere Kirljy iuid Staudinger differ. Adonis 

 is another Vienna Catalogue name. Hiibner figures the insect under 

 this name, and later authors follow him in iising it. Kottemburg, in 

 1775, describes the insect itnder the name of bellargiis, and says it occurs 

 in the beginning of Jmie, and is followed in his use of this name by 

 Esper, Borkliausen and Staudinger. Kottemburg, however, places next 

 before bellargns an insect which he names thetis, and wdiich lie says 

 occurs in August. His description of the male seems really to be a 

 description of those forms of the female adonis in which there is a 

 predominance of the male coloration, and of the female is that of a 

 typical adonis. Kirby adopts this name for the species, but bellargns 

 seems to have the juster claim as being an undoubted descri2:)tion of a 

 typical male. Erebia blandma affords an illustration of the rejection by 

 Staudinger of the Vienna Catalogxe, and is another instance where he 

 and Kirby difl'er. Fabricius described in 1787, under the name of 

 blandina, an insect which he had seen in Schiffermiiller's cabinet, under 

 the name of medea. He did not adopt the Vienna Catalogue name 

 because he had used that for another butterfly in 1775. Blandina was 

 adopted by the French authors, and by Curtis, Stephens and Doul)leday. 

 The Vienna Catalogue name, medea, is used l)y Hiibner, Ochsenhciiner, 

 Freyer, Staudinger in his first edition, Doubleday in his Supplement, and 

 Newman. Esper describes and figures the insect under the name of 

 cethiops in 1777. Staudinger, considering that the Vienna Catalogue 

 contains nothhig that will suffice for identification, takes the next 

 earliest name, a'thiops. Kirby, probably considering that the testimony 

 of Fabricius as to identity of the insect called medea in S.V. is suffi- 

 cient, adopts that name. Ltjca;na agestis affords an illustration of the 

 difficulties sometimes encountered in attempting to apply the " law of 

 iniority." Agestis is a Vienna Catalogue name, but the insect so named 

 had a light, fiery blue male. Hiibner figured the insect correctly under 

 the same name, and was followed by the later authors. Lewin, followed 

 by Haworth, called it idas, thinking it was identical with the insect so 

 named by Linnaeus, which was an error. Hufnagel in 1766 described 



