METAMORPHA. By Dr. A. 8eitz. 399 



Southern and Central Brazil near the coast, and it is necessary to be well acquainted in those regions in order 

 to recognize this species among the host of similarly coloured Lepidoptera. It is rather common, but I have 

 never observed it in great masses or swarms. 



E. aliphera Godt. (80 a). Upper surface bright fulvous, with black terminal border, forewing witli black aliphera. 

 subcostal and median stripes and black oblique band; under surface buff, the veins dark, ^^'ldely distributed 

 from Southern Brazil to Central America, along the east-coast, and far into the interior of the Continent to 

 Bolivia and Peru. It is one of the commonest butterflies, varying but little since it exactly copies the very 

 constant Colaenis julia (84 b). (Jnly towards the northern limits of its range of distribution we find specimens 

 having the colouring rather buff and with hardly any black on termen and transverse band, analogous to the 

 form C. julia cillene (84 b) which also flies there; I call this form ab. cillenula ab. nov. (80 b). aliphera aXw&y^ cillemtla. 

 associ0..tes, aside from Col. julia, with the following similarly coloured species: Dione juno (84c), Megalurn 

 petrea, Eresia aveyrana (91 d) ; undoubtedly also the Erycinid Lyiiuias tliyniira of Guayana has adopted the pro- 

 tective pattern. — In jMexico and Central America W(^ find another copy of the narrow, bordered form of Col. 

 julia flying there; upper surface brillant fulvous, the black terminal border narrower, but more sharply defined, 

 the intranerval points stronger: = gracilis SticJi. — Larva on Passiflorae; white, at the back yellow, marked gmcilis. 

 with brown and armed with black spines. Pupa dirty white, with dark si^ines and humps, the back and wing- 

 cases marked with brown. 



3. Genus: Metainorpha Hhn. 



The only species of this genus, Metamorplia dido, Mas formerly united with Colaettis; but the most 

 superficial examination of the shape of the insect and its wings, of the venation and in some respects also 

 the earlier stages, shows us at once that it is an American rei^resentative of the Indian genus Cethosia. This 

 fact becomes even more evident in the living insect. On ajjproaching in the forests near Rio some larger clea- 

 ring, one may notice a large, pale-coloured butterfly, flying slowly in a straight line, with a peculiarlj^ slow, 

 cb-eam-forlorn motion, from one end to the other of the open space ; suddenly, just before reaching the far end 

 of the clearing, it turns around with a jerk, returning the same way in the opjJosite direction. This game is 

 being continued for hours, for days, even for weeks, and one may observe its colours which in the beginning 

 were quite fresh, fading and being rubbed off, may see the tears and rents in its \\'ings growing larger after each 

 shower. Sometimes it disappears for an hour or two, to rest on some vine or to sip honey from one of the neigh- 

 bouring blossoming trees. In larger clearings one may occasionally observe two or more of these birfcterflies, 

 each enjoying the same game; as soon as they see one another, they interrupt their flight for a moment, circle 

 a few times around each other and then each returns to its post again.- If one captures one of them, its place is, 

 after a few days, generally taken by another one. Tiiese butterflies ai-e Metamorpha dido. 



Among Indian butterflies I know none that offers the same spectacle in so characteristic a manner 

 as CetJiosia nietneri. Anyone who has observed in tlie open air the two insects which in their outward appea- 

 rance widely deviate from each other, must be struck with tlie close analogy in the habits of these two species 

 which are separated by such enormous distances. But also their structure offers a good many analogous 

 features: The broad head, the stout, densely haired palpi, the naked eyes, the long antennae in which tiie clubs 

 are wanting, the shape of thorax and abdomen, the curved and dentate hindwings, as well as the venation, 

 agree most closely in almost every point. Many have pointed out the difference in the cell of the hindM'ing 

 which in Metamorpha is open, in Cethosia closed, but this is more than counterbalanced by the nu^ny analo- 

 gies. Thus Metamorpha has on the forewing the first subcostal nervulc arising before the end of the cell, just 

 as in most Cethosias, whereas in Colaenis julia it originates exactly at the end and in Col. phaerusa behind it. 

 The caterpillars are armed with spines, one pair of which, placed behind the head, is stronger than the rest; 

 the pupa bluntly angular, the abdominal segments with dorsal prominences. The larva feeds on Passiflora; 

 its grows very rapidly, the entire time required to nui,ture the imago from tlie egg occupying less than 6 weeks. 



M. dido. Wings transparent green, bordered with black ; black bands crossing the f orewings from the 

 apex of the cell to the middle of the termen, the hindwing from apex to inner margin. Under surface with the 

 bands and margins grey-fuscous, shaded with darker. Distributed throughout the nortliern part of South 

 America and Central America, from Honduras to southern Brazil, Bolivia and Peru. — ostara Rob. (84 a) is oslara. 

 by far the largest form, ranging from Colombia to Peru, distinguished by the pale yellow -green colouring. 



— diatonica Fruhst. replaces the preceding in the north, from Honduras to Panama; nnu;h smaller than ostara, diatonica. 

 its colouring intermediate between this and the blue-green dido L. of Surinam; this is found as far south as dido. 

 Bolivia, but is on the Lower xA.mazon replaced by pygmalion Fruhst., chariicteriz?d b}' the broader black pygmalion. 

 bands both of the upper and lower surface; differs from u-ernickei ni liaving tlie apex crescent-sliaped instead 



of rounded, and on the hindwing the green ground-colour reduced by broader black bands. Ranges to Venezuela. 



— wernickei Bob. (84 a) has tlie green ground-colour and the black bands d'^-ep.'r black, underneath the brown- icemickei. 

 grey bands more uniform anil rather narrower than in ostara. Southern Brazil and Paraguay. — Larva pale 



