224 MELITAEA. By Dr. A. Seitz. 



protomedia. M. protomedia Men. (66g). Above with thin but non-interrupted black markings which form with the dark 



veins a black network on a reddish or yellowish brown ground. The shape of the forewing of the <J is character- 

 istic , the apex being costally somewhat obliquely truncate and therefore the costal margin feebly angulate 

 in front of the cross-veins. The markings are very regular; a black marginal band, a flexuose submarginal 

 and an external discal one as well as an inner discal band crossing the apex of the cell in both wings are nearly 

 parallel with one another; in and below the cells irregular double markings. The forewing beneath pale ochreous 

 with abundant black or brown markings, which are pale only on the disc. The hindwing dull white in the 

 nymotypical form, with an inner band including the cell-spot and an external one which is interrupted below 

 th« apex, both bands being russet. In Eastern Siberia, Corea and throughout Palaearctic China, locally plentiful 

 argentea. (at Chang- Yang). Fixsen gave the name ab. argentea to specimens in which the bands on the hindwing 

 Ijeneath are silvery instead of ivory-white. — Herr Georg Kon, of Vladivostock, has been so kind as to 

 send me the description of the hitherto unknown larva of protomedia. The larva is ,, similar to that of dictynna, 

 velvety black; along the back a row of white false spines accompanied towards the' sides by a row of orange- 

 red ones, further laterad again white but smaller spines, between which there are white dots. All false spines 

 bear short black bristles. Head and thoracic legs black, prolegs whitish. Size as in dictynna. On Veronica 

 sibirica, usually singly. Changes in June into a black-marked white pupa which likewise resembles that of 

 dictynna, bearing 2 rows of orange dots; the butterfly appeared in 12 days." Leech treated protomedia at 

 first as a local form of dictynna, but considered it later as a distinct species, in which he was doubtless right, 

 as there occurs a true dictynna-iovm in Eastern Asia according to Graeser and Staudinger. 



minerva. M. iTiinerva Stgr. (67c). The nymotypical form of this species is small, not being larger than the smallest 



parthenie; above yet lighter, the dark bands always obsolete or vestigial in the costal area of the hindwing, mostly 



also in the greater part of the wing, the basal and abdominal areas of the hindwing on the contrary broadly dark 



coloured. Beneath also similar to parthenie, but the band situated beyond the cell distinct and somewhat 



different in position. From Central Asia: Ferghana, Ala-tau and Issyk-kul; very common in the Koksu-Pass. 



pallets. — pallas Stgr. (67c), from the Pamir, varies in size like the preceding form; the black markings are all completely 



palamedes. obsolete except some at the base, while in ab. palamedes Gr.-Grsh. the submarginal bands are still distinct. — 



pamira. Here belongs most probably also patnira Stgr., in which the upperside has more black than in pallas, but less 



than in minerva, while the underside of the hindwing is much brighter than in the other forms of minerva, which 



are dull beneath. — In the $$ of all these forms the upperside bears some pale colour before the apex beside 



expressa. orange. — In the form from Bokhara, however, expressa Gr.-Grsh., the pale yellow centre of the forewing of the 



$? above contrasts considerably with the fiery reddish yellow distal band. 



arcesin. jvi. arcesia Brem. (67d) is very similar to the preceding species, some of its forms having been united with it 



several times, but the dark bands of the forewing are on the whole much straighter, the band situated below the 

 apex of the cell and extending from the cross-veins to the middle of the hindmargin is much less flexuose, being 

 often exactly vertical to the hindmargin. The underside not so bright as in pamira. The ground-colour of the 

 upperside and the size are exceedingly variable. The smallest specimens from the high mountains have been 

 minor, separated as minor Elw. (Stgr. i. I.) (67d); the ground-colour duller, darker on account of the increased black 

 markings, almost recalling aurelia; the $ here figured is a comparatively large specimen, the ^^ being consider- 

 baicalensis. ablysmaller, being hardly the size of a5<e/-totrfes; intheAltai district. — ab. baicalensis Brem. is only an accidental 

 form, which occurs among ordinary specimens at Lake Baical and on the Amur, being distinguislied by a somewhat 

 different arrangement of the black markings above and by the still duller colouring of the underside; the rows 

 diuana. of dots and spots of arcesia are but vestigial in this aberration. — The form chuana Gr.-Grsh. {== sindura Alph.) 

 (67d) also is darker than true arcesia, not on account of an increase in black, which on the contrary forms thinner 

 bands, but because the ground-colour is a deeper, richer brownish yellow. — This species is distributed from 

 the Central Asiatic mountains, the Altai and Sajanskij, to the coasts of the Pacific, but does not extend to 

 Japan or China proper. The small alpine form occurs together with cinxia, iduna and aurinia in the Altai, 

 being common in July in grassy places. 



sindura. jyi. sindura. Likewise widely distributed and very variable. Its size varying from that of varia to that 



of athalia. The markings above recalling parthenie, but the veins much less black and much thinner, the 

 network so characteristic for European Melitaeas being absent from the upperside, at least in the (J(J, only 

 the $$ of some forms showing the same. The median band is always much broader than in the other Melitaeas, 

 partly because the band itself is wider, partly because the two middle macular bands are merged together 

 on account of the absence of one of the black transverse lines. Beneath the light submarginal lunules appears 



*) Staudinger has already drawn attention to tlie fact thiat baicalensi^i being tlie first described form tlie species should 

 bear this name according to the rules of nomenclature and arcesia treated as a vaoety. 



