LYC^NID^. 91 



both sexes arc spotted with LLick above, and occasionally {Dorilis, 

 Hufn.) the male is much darker and with less trace of red than the 

 female. The single South-African species presents but little difference 

 in the sexes, both being metallic orange-red ; but the male has a 

 violaceous surface-lustre absent in the female, while the latter has 

 on the hind-wings as well as on the fore-wings a discal series of black 

 spots. On the under side Chrysophanus has quite the pattern of the 

 large Alexis or Corydoii group of Lycama ; though in the more brilliant 

 species the soft orange tint of the fore-wings gives a very different 

 general aspect, and in some cases (as in Fhlceas, Linn.) the markings 

 are in the hind-wings much obscured. 



As in Lyccena, there has been considerable difficulty in determining 

 the limits of the species, and the synonymy of the European forms is 

 an intricate affair. There would appear, however, to be about forty 

 recognised species, of which rather more than half belong to the PaliB- 

 arctic Region, ton or eleven inhabiting Europe proper. Nearly all the 

 remainder are recorded from North America ; but a few species occur 

 most remarkably at isolated points far remote from each other, viz., 

 four in New Zealand, one in Queensland (Australia), one at the Cape, 

 and one in Chili. In Abyssinia a close ally or variety of C. Fhlccas 

 (C. PseudopldKcis, Lucas) occurs, and Mr. Godman has noted {Proc. 

 Zool. Soc. Lond., 1885, p. 539) the capture of a single specimen of a 

 Chrysophanus on Kilima-njaro in Tropical Eastern Africa. The out- 

 lying species just referred to — with the exception perhaps of Pscudo- 

 2)hlceas — are of distinct facies and apparently limited range ; but many 

 of the genus roam widely over Europe and Asia, while Phkcas occujjies 

 the entire Palasarctic Region and great part of North America, and 

 was one of the five butterflies taken in Grinnell Land (lat. 81° 45' N.) 

 by Captain Feilden. 



Chrysoplianns Orvs is common and generally distributed in open 

 ground over most of South Africa, and may be found on the wing 

 throughout the year. 



166. (1.) Chrysophanus Orus, (Cramer). 



? '^ Papilio Orus, Cram., Pap. Exot., iv. t. ccexxxii., fF. e, f (17S2). 

 Papilio Areas, Fab., Maut. Ins., ii. p. 80, n. 728 (1787); and 

 Hesperia Areas, Ent. Syst., iii. i. p. 311, n. 179 (1793). 

 Polyommatus Orus, Godt., Enc. Meth., ix. p. 672, n. 172 (1823). 

 (J 5 Clivysophajius Orus, Trim., E,hop. Afr. Aust., ii. p. 259, n. 160 

 (1866). 



Exp. al, ($) io-|^ lin. — i in. i lin. ; ($) il lin. — i in. 2^ lin. 



^ Metallic orangc-rcd, with a hlue-violaccous lustre ; a narrow 

 llackish liind-marginal edging and some black disced spots ; bases slightly 

 dusky. Fore-tving : a lunule closing cell ; usually a small spot in cell ; 

 beyond middle an irregular roAV of six or seven spots between costa 



