CORRMIA FERBUGARIA, HAW. AND O. UNIDENTARIA, HAW. 115 



which are almost identical in shape. In Sepp's great work (Nederlandsche 

 Inselden), the illustrations in which are, as a rule, remarkably good, an 

 egg is erroneously figured as that of the former species which certainly 

 does not belong to it. This figure has been handed down from 

 generation to generation by naturalists, as affording a striking example 

 of the difference which may exist l)etween the eggs of otherwise 

 closely allied sj^ecies ; Newman (British Butterflies, p. 8,) grows quite 

 eloquent over a difference which he certainly had never observed, and in 

 Dale's British Butterflies, one of the latest systematic works jDublished in 

 this country, the error is still perpetuated, although it had been shown to 

 be an error years before, Ijoth in this country (E. M. M., vol. viii., p. 52) 

 and in America {Psyche, vol. v., p. 152). Mr. Dale thus writes {Brit. Butt., 

 p. xxxi) ; *' One of the most curious and striking facts is the extreme 

 difference in the eggs of some species which, in the perfect state, closely 

 resemble each other. Thus, the egg of the large Tortoise-shell is pear- 

 shaped and smooth, whilst that of the small Tortoise-shell is oblong, with 

 eight very conspicuous ribs. The characters of each egg are, however, 

 so constant in each species of butterfly, that anyone who has paid 

 attention to the subject, can immediately say to what butterfly any 

 particular egg belongs." This passage, although there are no marks to 

 show that such is the case, is copied verbatim from Newman ; it is found 

 in the Introduction to Mr. Dale's work, which did not appear until the 

 work itself was completed, and the curious fact is, that in the body of 

 the work (p. 166), Mr. Dale had already given a first-class description 

 of the real egg of V. polychloros, which he evidently copied from 

 Buckler but had entirely forgotten by the time he came to pen his 

 Introduction. 



The intimate resemblance between the eggs of allied species be- 

 longing to the same genus, while they differ widely from those of 

 species belonging to neighbouring genera, has suggested the use of this 

 character for purposes of classification. Mr. Doherty {Journal of the 

 Asiatic Society of Bengal, 1889), has divided the Lycaenidae as 

 follows : — 



1. Aphnaeus group. — Egg large, tubercular, indentations obscurely 



hexagonal. 



2. Loxura group. — Egg similar, but not tubercular. 



3. Thecla group. — Egg small, tubercular, indentations sharply cut, 



usually trigonal. 

 4. — Arhopala group. — Egg small, spiny, indentations sharply cut, 

 tetragonal. 



Gopemia peppugaria. jlaia/". and G. iJiiideiitapia, jiaw-* 



By LOUIS B. PROUT, F.E.S. 



(Continued from page 112). 



Synonymy - Since then, we have two perfectly distinct species to 

 deal with, the next question which arises is the very difficult one of 

 their synonymy. When I tell you with regard to the two red forms 

 which cause all our trouble, that in Germany and America, our red 

 unidentaria is known as ferrugata, and in Scandinavia as var. (or ab.) 



* Abstract of paper read before City of London Entomological and Natural 

 History Society, March 20th, 1894. 



