242 ARGYNNIS. By Dr. A. Seitz. 



The bands of the hindwing beneath are even darker green than in valesina, also the apex of the 

 forewing being very deep sea-green. The silver-bands of the hindwing are exceptionally broadly while 

 and very prominent, and the green submarginal spots are more isolated and not so diffuse as in Chinese 

 paphia. Island of Tsushima. — The Chinese forms are all larger than European paphia, the ?? being 

 the largest of all, surpassing even the African form. The hindwing beneath is more abundantly dusted 

 megalegoria. with green than in Europe, but remains lighter than in Japanese specimens. This is megalegoria 

 Fruhst. In the northern districts of China (for instance near Peking) a valesina-\\k& $ is the com- 

 valesinides. moner form of this sex, $-f.-valesinides Fruhst., occurring in some places almost as the only form; it 

 neopaphia. closely resembles valesina, but is half as large again. — neopaphia Fruhst. (70e) is the name for the Amur 

 specimens, which are intermediate in size and colour between tlie small true paphia and the large paphioides. 

 — The conical, ribbed, yellowish grey eggs are deposited on tree-trunks, particularly pines; the 2 commences 

 about 4 or 5 ft. above the ground and %vith a few flappings of the wing flies higher up, depositing an egg 

 at intervalls of Va to 1 m, flying around the tree in a kind of spiral. When reaching a height of about 4 m 

 it leaves the tree in order to begin again in the same way on another one. The larva lives from August 

 until the end of May on Violaceae, hibernating very small (Gillmer) and beginning to feed already in March. 

 It is blackish brown, with a broad yellow dorsal stripe divided by a thin black line, and with numerous yellow 

 dots, spots and streaks on the sides; the spines long, yellow at the base, the two anterior ones curved and 

 prolonged, resembling antennae. The pupa is usually fastened low down on a pine-trunk; it is greyish brown, 

 with pointed processes on the head and sharp angles, and has conical pointed tubercles, which are at first silvery 

 and become golden before the emergence of the butterfly. The species is on the wing in Europe from July 

 till September, in Eastern Asia till October; it is very common everywhere and flies particularly on broad 

 roads in the forest and at the edges of woods. The butterfhes visit especially the flowers of brambles, scabious 

 and thistles, on which they can easily be caught. When desirous to mate the ^ circles around the $, while 

 the latter is flying with even flappings of the wings straight for a bush or a projecting branch. Here copulation 

 takes place, the sexes being often so strongly united that they remain together for some time, frequently the 

 one individual carrying the other about. On the whole the species varies only on the underside of the hindwing, 

 apart from the directions of variation described above. The upperside shows but rarely an increase of black 

 or pale patches (so-called water-marks). 



pandora. A. pandora Schiff. (= cinara F., maja Cr.) (71c). The largest European Argynnis. Above strongly 



recalling valesina, but brighter greenish, densely spotted with black. Beneath quite different, the apex of the 



forewing and the hindwing bright green, the disc of the forewing fleshy red and spotted with deep black, the 



hindwing with a few narrow bands, which are more white than silvery and vary strongly in number and 



dacica. development. In ab. dacica Horinuz., a kind of valesina-iorm from Roumania, the basal area of both wings 



pasargades. is darkened, contrasting with the distal area, which is slightly paler than usual. — pasargades Fruhst., from the 



Alexander Mts., has the whole upperside pale, especially the forewing, which has hardly a trace of green, being 



seitzi. also paler yellow beneath, with the black markings reduced. — seitzi Fruhst. (71c) has been described from 



specimens found by me in the Aures Mts. in Algeria. Larger than European individuals, paler green beneath, 



darker greenish yellow above; the black markings more prominent and abundant, often confluent. — ab. 



paupemila. paupcrcula Ragusa has no silvery white bands and spots; especially in the southern districts, where it is locally 

 the prevalent form, for instance in Algeria. — Larva purplish brown, with black head, without the yellow 

 dorsal stripe of paphia, otherwise similar to the latter, but the spines shorter; on the back of each segment 

 a velvety black spot with 2 white dashes; until June on Viola. The species occurs particularly in the Medi- 

 terranean countries, being found in North Africa, the Canaries, Spain, South France northward to the Valais, 

 where it approaches the German frontier, also in Italy, the south of Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Asia Minor, 

 going eastward to the Tian-shan; plentiful in some places. The butterflies are on the wing from June onwards; 

 their flight is fast and graceful, rushing or swimming, and they usually settle on those branches of trees which 

 hang over the road, or on thistle-heads. 



niphe. A. niphe L. (= hyperbius Johanns. [ante Linn.]) (71c, d). (J above fiery reddish yellow, $ leather-yellow 



with the apex of the forewing dark and traversed by a white oblique band. The hindwing beneath with 

 irregular, silvery and black bars and flexuose lines. Everywhere in the Himalaya and its branches; common 

 on the Yang-tse-kiang and in South Japan. — Larva black, with dark red bifid spines, the anterior pair being 

 curved forward, a deep orange stripe on the back, and small pale yellow spots and dashes dispersed over the 

 body; on Viola. Pupa blackish red-brown, with yellowish red wart-like acute tubercles and metallic points 

 on the back. The butterflies occur throughout the year in tropical India, being on the wing only during the 

 later half of the season in the Palaearctic Region. In Nagasaki I caught fresh specimens as late as the end 

 of October. The ?? are in China an exact copy of Danais genutia (28e), which likewise flies during the 

 autumn. But there also occur ?? which resemble the (J, the apex of the forewing not being black and white 

 castetsi. (ab. castetsi Oberth.). The <SS have a fast and untiring flight, occurring particularly on hill-tops; the ?? are 

 clumsy, only taking short flights and soon settling again. 



