NYMl'UAIJXAK: THK TKIIJK MKLITAEIDI. 619 



Abdomen : appendages of male ; upper organ small and insignificant, destitute of a dis- 

 tinct lioolv; clasps small and compact, generally more or less quadrate and rather gib- 

 bous at the l)ase, bearing an apical, usually curving, finger-like hook, and an interior, 

 more or less sickle-shaped spine, crossing that of the opposite side. In these organs 

 the group recalls the Vanessidi rather than the Argynnidi. 



Egg. Somewhat acorn-shaped, higher than broad, well rounded at base and at 

 sides, and broadly docked at summit, with very slight and pretty numerous longitudi- 

 nal ribs occupying only the upper half of the egg, Avliile below the surface is smooth, 

 or inileuted with polygonal or rounded depressions. 



Caterpillar at birth. Tapillae of the body inconspicuous, all arranged in paired 

 rows, of whicli tliere are three on either side of the body al)Ove the spii'acles, and 

 which are disposed in nearly the same manner on the thoracic and abdominal seg- 

 ments ; slender, tapering, finely pointed, not very long, and sometimes faintly spicu- 

 liferous hairs arise from the papillae. 



Mature caterpillar. Head somewhat smaller than the body, but little, if at all, 

 tumid above. Body attenuated a little anteriorly on the thoracic segments. Abdomi- 

 nal segments divided into a much larger anterior and a short posterior subsegment, 

 the former sometimes indistinctly divided again posteriorly. Spines heavy and coarse, 

 tapering, with diverging needles, mounted on wartlets, and directed angularly upward. 

 Spines arranged in a mediodorsal row on the abdominal segments, and three addi- 

 tional rows on either side above the spiracles on most of the segments ; the first 

 thoracic segment with a transverse row either of spines, the upper ones (at least) 

 shorter than those of the rest of the body, or of long hairs. 



Chrysalis. Head not projecting independently beyond the thorax, but forming, as 

 it were, a single mass with it. Superior border of wings with a slight blunt elevation 

 in the place of the secondary tubercle. Dorsum of the mesothorax pretty regularly 

 rounded, scarcely carinate. Dorsum of abdomen not longitudinally carinate, butAvith 

 a dorsal and laterodorsal series of equal, small, Vjlunt tubercles; cremaster with a lat- 

 eral prominence near the base. 



The butterflies of this tribe closely resemble the Argynnidi in structure, 

 and have generally been considered more intimately associated with them 

 than is here represented. They are either of the medium or somewhat 

 under the medium size, and, like the previous tribe, are usually fuhous 

 colored above, but so much more heavily bordered and checquered with 

 black, that some genera are almost black with tawny spots ; beneath, the 

 markings somewhat resemble those of the Argynnidi, but the hind wings 

 are paler in tint, with seldom any trace of silvery or nacreous markings ; 

 as in the Argynnidi, or to a greater extent, the wings are rounded and 

 somewhat elongated. The insects are of rather feeble flight, and seldom 

 rise far above the ground. They are generally abundant in individuals, 

 and often very local in their distribution. 



They are mainly characteristic of the New World, where they abound 

 in the tropics and north temperate zone, but they are also well repre- 

 sented in all the northern parts of the Old ^^'orld, and many sjjecies are 

 found in the higher mountain regions of both hemispheres. 



They are generally single brooded toward the northern limit of their 

 range, or in high altitudes, but double brooded or polygoneutic elsewhere. 

 The eggs are generally (perhaps always) laid in clusters, and the cater- 

 pillars, at least in the early half of their life, are social, often construct- 



