LYCANIDE. TARUCUS. 187 
they are rather more in a straight line ; the second median nervule is given off sometimes 
immediately before, sometimes at, and sometimes immediately after, the end of the cell. 
I have described thus carefully all the differences I can discover in the structure of 
7. theephrastus and 7. plinius, as Mr, W. Doherty, whose opinion is entitled to respect, holds 
that the latter species should form the type of a genus distinct from Zavacus. The differences, 
however, are so slight, that I follow Mr. Moore in placing them both in one genus. 
I have fully described the transformations of 7. theophrastus, Fabricius, as observed 
in Calcutta, when describing that species. 
Tarucus is a widely-distributed genus, occurring in Europe, North, West, and South 
Africa, Western Asia, Asia Minor, Persia, India, Ceylon, but notin the Andaman or Nicobar 
Isles, or the Malay Peninsula ; one species, 7. slinzus, occurs in Western Africa, Aden, almost 
throughout India, Ceyion, Burma, Java, and in China. Two species occurin Europe. 7: dalca- 
nica, Freyer, is found in Turkey, also in Western Asia and Persia, and is perhaps only a local 
race of 7. theophrastus; the other, 7. ¢e/icanus, Lang, in South Europe, North Africa, and 
Western Asia, and is allied to 7. plinius. Omitting 7. plinius, which is easily recognised, and 
belongs to a different group, six forms of 7. theophrastus have been recorded from India, and 
are maintained as distinct species by Mr. Butler. I am able to recognise as satisfactorily 
distinct two only of these forms, 7. ¢heophrastus (which, however, Mr. Butler of late insists is 
not an Indian insect at all, but confined to North Africa and Aden, though in 1883 he recorded 
it from Mhow, but which I agree with most writers and observers in believing to occur every- 
where almost in India and Ceylon), and 7. venosus, which has as yet been found only in a 
corner of the Western Himalayas, in Kumaon, and in Malda, I can indeed separate and 
recognise specimens of all the ether described forms, but I find by a careful study of my 
long series of specimens of this genus from all parts of India, that the characters given 
as representing specific differences are infinitely variable: they grade off one into another, 
and are quite unreliable. However, for facility of further study, I have given the descriptions 
of all these so-called species separately, and placed in the Habitat headings only those localities 
for each species which have been recorded by others. 
Eey tothe Indian species of Tarucus. 
A. Underside, forewing streaked and spotted, markings not arranged in alternate broad and narrow 
bands at right angles to costa. 
a, Male, upperside, both wings with narrow black border to outer margin, 
752. T. THEOPHRaSTUS, North Africa, Aden, 
753. T. NARA, Karachi, Western Himalayas, Punjab, Bombay, Deccan, Central 
India. 
754. T. CALLINARA, Upper Burma, various parts of India. 
755. T. ALTERATUS, Western Himalayas. 
956. T. ExTRICATUS, Karachi, Campbellpore, Landour, 
6. Male, upperside, both wings with broad black border to outer margin. 
757. T. VENosuUS, Western Himalayas, Kumaon, Malda district. 
B. Underside, forewing with markings arranged in alternate broad and narrow bands at right angles 
to costa. 
758 T. pitnrus, Western Africa, Aden, India, Ceylon, Upper Burma, Java, China, 
752. Tarucus theophrastus, Fabricius. 
Hesperia theophrastus, Fabricius, Ent. Syst., vol. iii, pt. 1, p. 281,n. 82(1793) ; Polyommeatus theophrastus, 
Godart, Enc. Méth., vol. ix, p. 658, n. 139 (1823); Lycena theophrastus, Lucas, Expl. Alg., Zool., vol. iii, p. 362, 
n. 47, Lép. pl. 1, figs. 6, 6a, male: 66, antenna (1849) ; id., Horsfield, Cat. Lep. E. I. C., p. 73, n. 8 (1828) ; id., 
Horsfield and Moore, Cat. Lep. Mus. E. 1. C., vol. x, p. 25, n. 22 (1857) ; id., Trimen, Rhop. Afr. Aust., p. 241, 
n. 142 (1866) ;* id., Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1865, p. 772 3 id., Lang, Butt. of Eur., p. 140 (1884); Lampides 
theophrastus, Butler, Cat. Fab, Lep. B, M., p. 164, n. 9 (1869) ; Tarucus theophrastus, Moore, Lep. Cey., vol. 1, 
p. 81, pl. xxxvi, fig. 3 (1881) ; id., Butler, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1883, p. 148, n. 13 ; idem, id., 1. c., 1884, Dp. 
484, n. 13; id., Swinhoe, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1885, p. 134, 0. 71 ; idem, id., l. c., 1886, p. 428, n. 553 id., Do- 
herty, Journ. A, S. B., vol. lv, pt. 2, pp. 112, 132, nm. 159 (1886); L. pszttacus, Allard, Ann. S. Fr., 1867, p. 313+ 
EE aaa 
* 7. theophrastus is not included in Mr. Trimen’s “ South-African Butterflies,” so probably the species was 
formerly incorrectly given as from South-Africa in the British Museum collection. 
