.39 



Upper Side. AntemiEe black. Thorax and abdomen dark brown. Anterior wings next the bodv 

 dark tawny orange, but next the tips dark brown, ahnost black, the darkest part of the wings having 

 several dusky yellow spots, while the orange part has a number of black ones. Posterior wings dark 

 orange, and next the body streaked with black, and a black zigzag border running along the external 

 edges. 



Under Side. Palpi, neck, legs, and breast pale yellow. Abdomen orange. Anterior wings much 

 lighter than on the upper side, being, next the body, cream colour ; the part next the tips dark russet. 

 All the spots are very discernible on this side, the yellow ones being here much lighter. Posterior wings 

 cream-coloured, having the black border and streaks equally as strong and discernible as on the upper 

 side. Margins of the wings entire. 



SATURNIA ARGUS. 



Plate XXIX. fig. 1. 



Order: Lepidoptera. Section: Diurna. Family: Bombycicte, Steph. 



Genus. Saturnia, Schrarik. Attacus, Germ. Phaltena ( Attacus), Drury. 



Saturnia Argcs. Alis pallide testaceo-albidis punctis ocellaribus fenestratis numerosis, caudis longissimis. 

 (Expans. Alar. 3 uuc. 5 lin.) 



Syn. Bombyx Argus, Fabr. Ent. Syst. 111. 1. p. 414. TVo. 24. Donovan Nat. Repos. i>. 173. OVw. Enc. 

 jMHh. o. -29. 22. 

 Phaloena (Bombyx) brachyura, Cramer Ins. tab. 29._/". 1. Drurij, App. vol. 3. 



Habitat: "Sierra Leone, Mr. Smeathman, 1775" {Driiry's MSS.). 



Upper Side. Antennae almost black, and pectinated. The neck and head flesh-coloured. Thorax 

 ash-coloured. Abdomen pale flesh-coloured. Wings dingy flesh-coloured, the anterior ones having five 

 or six small transparent spots situated in the centre of them. The posterior ones furnished with two 

 long tails about two inches and three-quarters long, the extremities being cream-coloured, the upper part 

 red-brown ; with five small yellowish round spots, edged with black, placed in the centre of the wings. 



Under Side. Palpi brown. Tongue concealed. Legs red-brown. Breast, sides, and abdomen 

 cream. Wings coloured as on the upper side. 



I have adopted the Fabrician specific name, notwithstanding its subsequent date, that 

 proposed by Cramer being exceedingly inapplicable. Drury states, on the authority of 

 Mr. Smeathman, that this curious insect was found on the island of Banana. Its flight is 

 exceedingly slow, and its tails seem rather to impede it. Mr. Donovan states that several 

 specimens of this insect had been received from Sierra Leone (which habitat is given by 

 Drury in the body of his work, but corrected as above in the observations communicated to 

 him by Mr. Smeathman) and that he is not aware of the species having occurred in any other 

 part of Africa, neither had he understood that any other collector since Mr. Smeathman 

 had met with the species. Of the original specimens a pair belonged to Mr. Drury, which 

 came into the hands of Mr. Donovan, who also mentions a fine specimen as existing in the 

 Banksian Cabinet at the Linnsean Society ; adding, that some few other specimens passed 

 into different continental Cabinets, all of which, however, were those collected by Mr. 



