INTRODUCTION. lxix 



/aria. Independently of the fact that other and better princi- 

 ples of classification have subsequently been employed, it 

 was soon observed that the so-called twilight -flyers are really 

 true Night-Moths, which fly during the whole night, and not at 

 morning and evening twilight only. But in the East Indies 

 we meet with true twilight-fliers, which do not belong to the 

 genus Spfa'nx, which Linnaeus considered such, but to the 

 great group of Rhopalocera* The sun has scarcely set, before 

 we see everywhere, both in Java and Celebes, numbers of the 

 common Melanitis kda, Linn., Amathusia phidippus, Linn., 

 and Casyupa thrax, Linn., and in Celebes, Debts europa, 

 Fabricius; but I never saw these species wandering about at 

 night in the moonlight, or entering lighted rooms like the true 

 Night-Moths, which are very numerous, although like the latter, 

 they sit still and repose all day, and if disturbed only fly a 

 little way and settle again directly. I have also seen the 

 commonest of these Butterflies, M. kda, flying in abundance 

 in the evening twilight ; and I once observed the same with 

 D. europa. Moreover, I suspect from the exactly similar be- 

 haviour of different species of Mycaksis, and of Elymnias lais 

 Cramer, in the daytime, that these should also be classed 

 among the twilight-fliers in Java. 



" In every country with which I am acquainted, it is well 

 known that many Lepidoptera are very injurious in the larva 

 state, but the perfect insect is considered everywhere to be 

 harmless. I must tell the truth about this, as I have already 

 about their gentleness, and attack their reputation on this 

 point also. In South-west Celebes, a small white Moth, an un- 

 described species of Sarpophaga, is one of the pests of the 

 country. These Moths fly into lighted rooms in the evening 

 in incredible swarms, settle upon everything, including the in- 



* The South American Brassoluuz (a sub-family of Nymbhalida\ are 

 also twiliiiht-fliers. 



