KHVCIXIDAK; LII'.VTHKA. I'.v Dr. A. Skitz. 251 



7. Family: Erycinidae. 



This family, which contains considerably more than a thousand forms, is very unevenly distributed 

 over the globe. More than 90% of them inhabit America, the remainder occurring almost exclusively in 

 the Malay-Archipelago and the mountain-chains of the Himalaya, only two species being found in Europe. 



The Erijcinirlac are characterized by their small size and the Lj'caena-like facies of the butterflies. 

 The larvae also resemble those of the Lycaenids, being onisciform, with the exception of the very different 

 Libijtheinac The genus Libi/fhca differs also in the chrysalis being suspended, while those of all the other 

 Erycinids are attached by the tail and held in position by a girdle, by which the family is distinguished 

 from many Lycaenids. 



Head small, being large only in Lihi/thcn ; frons liroad ; eyes semiglobular, often hairy. Antennae 

 evenly widening to form a long club only in Libi/thea ; in the other forms long, thin, very straight, with 

 small club: they are frequently held forward in a parallel position. Thorax not specially stout, but rather 

 strong, appearing hard to the touch, almost as in Hesperids. Forelegs in the cfcf modified to a brush, 

 while all the six legs are developed in the ??. Abdomen short, usually not reaching the anal angle, 

 extending beyond the same only in a few American forms (Stalachtis). Wings very delicate, the scales 

 •being so loose tlial the specimens become very easily defective. Cell relatively broad, sometimes very 

 short. Outer margins very diverse, being entire, angulate or sinuous ; the hindwing often tailed, sometimes 

 modified to a linear appendage. The Erycinids are connected with the Nymphalids b>' the Libytheinae and 

 on the other hand intergrade with the Lycaenids. The greater proportion of the species are rather rare, 

 many even extremely scai'ce, onh' a few are common, as for instance Nenwobiiis lucina, but even among 

 these it is ijuite the exception that a species is met with in swarms or in such numbers as in many forms 

 of the families Numphalidar and Lycaeniduc. They love to keep to the shade when on the wing, and most 

 of them have the habit of settling on the underside of leaves with the wings spread out. like Geometei's. 



A. Subfamily: Libytheinae. 



This group, which consists of the single genus Lihythm , deviates so much from the other Erycinids that 

 there was justification for separating it as a distinct family; certain authors even have united the Libytheas with 

 the Nymphalids s. str. These butterflies are very easily recognized by the strongly prolonged palpi, which project 

 forward beyond the head, forming a beak. The head is liroart, with a broad frons, the eyes naked, the antennae 

 gradually enlarged to a moderate club. The wings broad, the forewing of the cf usually, of the ? always angulate 

 below tiie apex, the hindwing rounded, without tail. The larvae, as far as they are known, slender, clothed with 

 short minute hairs, green, without special distinctions, being somewhat similar to a half-grown larva of I'leris napi. 

 Pupa smooth, without tubercles or angular projections, somewhat flattened anteriorly, incuved dorsally behind the 

 thorax, with the wing-cases extending far down, suspended by the cremaster. without girdle. The butterflies as a 

 rule fly singly with an irregular, somewhat flapping flight, but congregate sometimes in numbers about the food- 

 plants in contrast to all the other Erycinids, which never occur in swarms. They settle on twigs or on the ground, 

 and keep the wings closed when resting. — The single genus contains more than a dozen foiTus, which belong to 

 .S subgenera and 10 species. The geographical distribution is very remarkable, the genus being found in all the 

 five divisions of the globe and only a single species occurring in most districts. 



L Genus: I<ibythea /•'. 



The generic characters are the same as those of the subfamily. The Palaearctic species all belong 

 to the subgenus Libythca, which differs from the African subgenus Dichora in the antennae becoming 

 gradually thicker, and from the American Hypnlxs in the less strongly prolonged palpi. 



L. celtis Fuessl. (71 f). x\bove black, with large yellowish brown spots; hindwing beneath very celtis. 

 diversely coloured, several names referring to such colour-forms (obscitra , snbochrarea Mill.), usualh^ earth- 

 grey, clouded, sometimes however uniformly shaded with reddish yellow or deep dark brown. In South 

 Europe, northward to South France and the Tyrol, also in North Africa, Asia Jlinor, and Central Asia. — 

 In Central and East Asia there occurs the form lepita Moore (71 f), which is somewhat larger, the fore- lepita. 

 wing being more acutely angulate and the hindwing bearing on the upperside a 3 or 4-lobed longitudinal 

 stripe instead of cloudy ochreous spots. From Kashmir to North India and eastwards to .lapan. — Larva 

 evenly cylindrical, not dissimilar to a Ti^r/r/.s-larva , clothed with short velvet} hairs, minutely dotted with 

 dark, on the back a pale longitudinal stripe, on the side a rosy or purplish red stripe, the venter lighter. 

 Only observed on Celtis, but in captivity takes also Prunus. Pupa pale green, without projections. The 

 butterflies are found in Europe at different times from April till July. In the warmer districts they appear 

 in June and Jidy, being in Kashmir still frequent in October, while in Japan they prepare for hibernation 

 already early in the season , becoming lethargic. They reappear from their hiding-places in March and 



