436 Lieut.-Colonel N. Manders on the 
single egg. She then flew off and basked again, returning 
in a few minutes to almost the same leaf, where she again 
went through the egg-laying process. 
The egg laid 27. x. ’06 is globular, pale yellow and slightly pitted 
and is distinctly large for the size of the butterfly. 
The larva hatched 3. xi. and on emergence was very pale yellow- 
ish-green with shiny black head, tail bifid, no other markings could 
be made out. 12. xi. length 6 mm., head black, body pale glistening 
green, under a lens two small prominences on either side of the top 
of the head can be made out, also a green dorsal line and yellowish 
spiracular lines; with a bifid tail, of the same colour on the last 
segment. 20. xi. length 10 mm., head brown, body rather glistening 
greenish-white ; dorsal line well-marked posteriorly, greenish-red ; 
sub-dorsal and spiracular lines yellowish ; all the legs same colour as 
the body. Under a lens the whole body and head is seen to be 
covered with short whitish hairs, and to be minutely transversely 
striated. The bifid tail beneath, and its base above, the same colour 
as the body, remainder reddish-brown. 10. xii. Full fed, length 
26 mm.; pale pinkish-brown tinged with green, head darker. A 
dorsal catenulated line, much more pronounced posteriorly, brown, 
fading to greenish-brown towards the head. A waved sub-dorsal 
line and straight sub-spiracular line, light brown. Spiracles black, 
legs and prolegs the same colour as the body. 
Pupa, light green with straight narrow black transverse line across 
the mouth parts, another similar line at base of wing-covers. Of the 
usual Satyrid shape. 
The transformations of this insect take longer for their 
completion than those of the much larger Melanitis leda, 
though both are very sensitive to meteorological conditions. 
Atella phalanta, Drury. 
9. Atella Phalanta, Dru. 
This is another abundant butterfly both in Mauritius 
and Bourbon, particularly on the sea-coast, where it some- 
times swarms among the food-plant (Flacourtia). The 
life-history is well known. 
Flies I-VII, abundant; VI, scarce; VIII—XII, abundant. 
I have observed on more than one occasion that for 
twenty-four hours after shedding the larval skin the pupa 
hangs free like that of Vanessa, and afterwards by a con- 
traction of the abdominal segments it appresses itself along 
