96 NYMPHALID^. NYMPHALINyE. NEPTIS. 



Description : " Has much the appearance of the European 1^. accris in the more elongat- 

 ed form of the wings and in the less defined markings of the UPPErside, which, in the male, are 

 more like those of the European species than in A, astola. The colour of the underside is 

 duller and more yellow, and the black borders of the markings are still more prominent than in 

 N. astola, the veins of the forewing being streaked with black in front of the triangular discoi- 

 dal spot." {Moore, 1. c. in Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond.) 



♦' Male and female. Upperside black. Forewing with a white longitudinal streak within 

 the cell, a lengthened triangular spot beyond it, a discal transverse curved series of seven oval 

 spots, and a submarginal row of small lunate spots; a very indistinct pale waved line between the 

 discal series and another along the outer margin ; the discoidal streak slightly black-speckled 

 near its thickest end. Htndwi7ig-w\i\\ a white broad recurved medial transverse band, and a discal 

 linear series of six quadrate spots ; a pale linear indistinct line intervening across the disc, and 

 another along the outer margin. Underside ferruginous ; with white markings more prominent 

 than above and all black bordered ; the hindwing having a short white streak on base of costa 

 and another below it." 



" Larva pale green, with an oblique lateral pink fascia from top of anal segment ; head 

 armed with two short conical points, third, fifth and anal segments with a dorsal pair of 

 short fleshy setose spines and two longer divergent spines on fourth segment. Feeds on 

 Legiiminosa, PuPA short, pale reddish-brown, wing cases dilated laterally, head bluntly cleft. 

 (Moore, 1. c. in Lep. Cey.) 



In Ceylon iV. j'arwo«a is "Widely distributed, occurring in the hills and plains, both 

 in forest and cultivated land all the year. Flight slow, floating, alights on bushes with wings 

 generally if not always open" (Hutchison). " Found everywhere, and below 3,coo feet 

 in great abundance nearly all the year" (Mackwood). 



The Indian Museum, Calcutta, possesses specimens of N. varmona named by Mr. Moore 

 from Bombay, the Khandesh District, and two from Ceylon, also one from Sikkim with a query. 

 Even these five examples show considerable variation, in one Ceylon specimen the seventh upper 

 spot of the discal series of the forewing on the upperside is wanting, in the Khandesh specimen 

 the marginal line to the hindwing on the upperside is very prominent and pure white, less 

 so in one Ceylon specimen, and obscure and sordid white in the others. The marginal spots 

 on the forewing on the upperside are inconstant in number, size and distinctness. On the 

 underside of these specimens the shade of the ground-colour is very variable, in some it 

 is bright lif^ht ochreous, in others dull umber brown, and there are intermediate forms between 

 these extremes. In some specimens the three upper spots of the discal series in the forewing 

 on the underside are completely joined, forming a continuous white band, in others well se- 

 parated by the black-edged veins. The prominence of the black edging to the bands and spots 

 is variable, and so is the black streaking between the veins. In fact N. varmona is one 

 of the most variable as well as wide-spread species of the genus. In addition to the speci- 

 mens mentioned above which have been named by Mr. Moore, the Indian Museum, Calcutta, 

 possesses examples from Malda, Calcutta, Cachar, Sibsagar, Madras, Bangalore, Calicut, and 

 Trevandrum. 



380. NeptiS disrupta, Moore. 

 A^. disrupta, Moore, Ann. and Mag. of Nat. Hist., fourth series, vol. xx, p. 339 (1877) ; idem, id., Lep. 

 Cey , p. 5S. pl- xxviii, figs. 4, 4a (1881). 



Habitat : Ceylon. 



Expanse : ? , 212 inches. 



Description : " Female. Upperside black. Forewing with whitish discoidal streak 

 and triangular terminal spot ; three spots from middle of hind margin and a fourth smaller spot 

 beyond the triangular discoidal spot [all that is left of the usual curved discal band] ; 

 between this series and a submarginal series of somewhat conical spots is a discal 

 series of indistinct pale dusky oblique spots ; a linear marginal row of narrow indistinct dusky 

 streaks. Hindivino, with a discal [our submarginal] wiiite maculated band, a quadrate 



