SPHINX. By Dr. K. Jordan. 235 



5. Genus: Sphinx L. 



In our Revision of the Sphingidae (1903) we have dealt with this genus under the name of Hy- 

 loicus Hbn. According to more recent suggestions of the Ooniinittee on Nomenclature of the International 

 Zoological Congresses it is advisable to select by tautonomy the tjqie of genera whose tj^pe had not been fixed 

 by the author. In our case Linnaeus only mentions the name Sphinx in the literature quoted by him under ligustri 

 and according to the above principle thi.s species would be the genotype. As hereby the name Smerinthus, 

 which has been in use for so long, will be saved for ocellata, the new principle advocated by the Committee 

 will be welcomed by many, although it is antagonistic to the law of absolute priority. 



The 30 species which we place into this genus are distinguished before all the other Sphingicae by the 

 fact that at least the fore tibiae are spined and the pulvillus is at the same time absent, while the abdomen 

 bears grey-white, red or very slightly yellowish lateral spots, the pupa has a free tongue-case lying on the 

 breast, and the head of the larva is rounded in all stages. Sheath of duct of (J with apical process. — Larva 

 not dichromatic as in Acheroniia and Herse; the horn simply curved, pointed; the head sometimes narrowed 

 above, but never pyramidal as in Lapara (the first stage of which, however, also has a round head). The 

 five Palearctic species probably all have one brood only and hibernate as pupa in a cell in the ground or in 

 moss. The other 25 species belong to the American fauna. The geims, which is derived from the large and 

 purely American genus Protoparce, is absent in the Indo-Australian and Ethiopian Regions. The five Palearctic 

 species are closely allied to certain North American forms. These species oi Sphinx, therefore, occupy a similar 

 position in the Old World fauna to that of the Old World genera Cephonodes and Sataspes and the Palearctic 

 species of Haemorrhagia, which are also .specialised branches of an American stock. It is not advisable generi- 

 cally to separate ligustri and pinastri (Rebel, Tutt, Staudinger), as such a proceeding would entail the 

 erection of quite a number of genera for the other 28 species. But on the other hand there is no justification 

 for placing these two European species with convolvuli (Spuler), as consequently nearly all the other Acheron- 

 tiinae would have to be placed in the same genus, which would render a classification according to relationship 

 illusory. 



S. ligustri. Abdomen with red lateral spots, hindwing also red with two black transverse bands and a 

 short oblic^ue subbasal one. Harpe of (J broad, undivided. Two local forms: — constricta ButJ. (= amurensis comiricla. 

 Oberth., spiraeae [Esp.] Graes.) (36 c). A small form on an average, in which the black bands of the hindwing 

 are more or less confluent and the red colour of the hindwing and abdomen is pale. North China, Amurland 

 and Japan, June and the beginning of July, rather rare in collections; larva on Spiraea. — ligustri L. (36c). ligustri. 

 With rare exceptions the abdominal spots and the ground-colour of the hindwing are bright rose-red, also the 

 median black band of the hindwing is usually separated from the outer band. We have not found structural 

 differences between ligustri and constricta. Western Europe to Asia Minor and Central Asia. The following 

 names of aberrations must be mentioned, ab. spiraeae Esp., small, pale, subbasal band of hindwing absent; spiraeae. 

 larva found on Spiraea chamaedrifolia. In ab. albescens Tutt the red colour of the hindwing and abdomen albescens. 

 is nearly white, while these portions are pale lemon-yellow in ab. lutescens Tutt. ab. obscura Tuft are much lidcscens. 

 blackened specimens. In ab. rosacea Rebel the costal area of the forewing is bright rose-red. In ab. brunnea "g^^!^^*^ 

 Tutt the usually pale costal area of the forewing and the ground-colour of the hindwing are dusted with brown, bnmnea. 

 Besides these forms Tutt names some intermediate forms (ab. pallida, ab. subpallida, ab. incerta, ab. typica, 

 ah. intermedia). The moth common in most localities from the end of April to July, in the Southern districts 

 again in the autumn (early specimens, not second brood); in the East much rarer than in Central and Western 

 Europe. In the whole Palearctic Region northward to Scotland and Scandinavia ; the records from the Azores, 

 Canaries and North Africa require confirmation; not recorded from Greece. In the evening at flowers and 

 the light. — Egg light green. Larva green, horn dark, in the first stages half as long as the body, and as in 

 the allied species forked, later on simply curved downwards; 7 oblique stripes laterally, an eighth indicated, 

 all purple and white, but varying slightly in the shade of colour. On Ligustrum, Spiraea, Fraxinus, Syringa, 

 Viburnum, etc. Pupa in a cell in the ground, tongue close to the thorax, up to 8 mm. long; cremaster with 

 two small points at the apex and two before it. 



S. pinastri. Grey, patagia with black stripe, abdomen with light grey lateral spots edged with black. 

 On the forewing two transverse bands converging behind, a few black discal longitudinal streaks and an 

 obliqift? apical streak black: hindwing almost uniformly grey. Fringes of both wings chequered with white. 

 Antennae distally distinctly widened. Spines of tibiae small and not numerous ; spurs of hind tibia long. Harpe 

 of ^ bipartite. Vaginal orifice of $ central, not proximal as in ligustri, before the orifice a lobate process, 

 which it absent in ligustri. Single specimens have been found in the United States and described as saniptri 

 Streck. ; they do not differ from European examples and have probably been accidentally imported. Butler 

 also described a specimen as asiaticiLS with the locality Scinde, which also does not differ from pinastri and 

 was probably erroneously labelled as coming from Scinde (India). On the other hand, in a collection of Ja- 



