MESOSEMIA. By Dr. A, Skitz. (^M 



I 





emidiata Stich. has a slight reflect it m (thus forming a transitinii to violaria) and in the hindwing larger marginal oitidinlit. 

 e>e-spnts. Teffe. — tephrias Stkh. show:; all the spots of the wings above reduced in size; Matto Grosso. — trpltrhix. 

 From Central Ameiica to the south as far as Central Brazil a,nd Bolivia. In most of the districts common. 



E. lycisca Wv. (12:; f). Tliis magnificent species is hitherto known only from Central America, Co- h/ri^ca. 

 lombia, and Peru, but locally not rare. Forewings without any white vitreous dots at all, Init with a large, 

 sometimes metal-pupilled median eye-spot; hindwings with a biight blue lustre. 



E. patrona ll'^^w;. Size and forewings almost exactly as in lycisca, but the hindwings not with a blue piilrmi,,. 

 lustre, but with a reddish-yellow marginal marking; the eje-spot of the forewing with a bright metallic jjupil, 

 the point of the antenna whitish, but not so silvery white as in leKColu'pha. From Colombia and Ecuador. — 

 persona Stgr. (123 f) is probably only a large form of it from Central America. — proniota Stich. (123 f) seem !"■ 

 to be specimens originating from Teffe on the Amazon River. Thej' are somewhat smaller, darker, more uni- 

 colorous, and the eye-spot of the forewing is somewhat smaller. 



E. cyclopia Stick. (123 f,g). I figure for this a species which I received from Chuchurras in Peru i-i/rlopia. 

 and to which Stichel's description fits the best of all to the Enri/bin lying before me. As there does not exist 

 a figure of this insufficiently described species, we reproduce both the sexes and botii the surfaces. Charac- 

 teristic is the fiery-red marking on a deep daik-brown ground, and the 2 small white punctiform spots on the 

 forewing. I remark, however, that I have not seen the type being in a private collection. 



E. juturna FMr. (123 g). Our figure has been compared with Felder's type lying before me and corres- jiilnnia. 

 sponds exactly with it. The typical juturna originates from Surinam and has a light flesh-coloured distal part 

 of the hindwing, in which there are black spots and from where rosy-red bows extend into the brown basal 

 area. — hari Weehs is scarcely different, but in some places it occui's much larger; Bolivia and Peru. — turna /'"/•;. 

 Dogn. (123 g) is likewise larger and has more unicolorous forewings; from Loja in Ecuador. The led of the 

 hindwings is extended almost as far as to the middle ci^ll, but at its proximal margin it encloses 3 or 4 black 

 wedge-shaped spots. In Colombian specimens the latter are absent, so that a resemblance is effected with 

 the Colondiian donna with which Stattdikger confounded the species, from which, however, it is immediately 

 distinguishable by the large eye-spot of the forewing, which is absent in donna above. Stichel describes this 

 insignificant form of turna as a distinct species and denominates it helias. hdias. 



E. donna i^Wr. nee Stgr. (123 g). Immediately recognizable by the unicolorous brown wings with donna. 

 a broad deep led border of the hindwing, in which there are 1 to 5, exceptionally also no black punctiform spots. 

 Colombia, where it was taken at altitudes of up to TidO m (Muzo). 



(i. (iciiiis: Me»»oseiiiia Hhn. 



This genus rather closely ajjproximates the preceding genus, tliough it is by no means so uniform. 

 Also here there is in most of the species almost exactly above the middle of the forewing a lai'ge eye-spot which 

 often exhibits 2 or 3 white pupils, and where it is absent, one mostly finds yet its traces in the shape of a 

 small central shade or minute cloud. The Mesosemia differ from the Enrijhia by their smaller heads, the shorter 

 antennae, the borders of the forewings being generally slightly curved^ the short abdomen mostly not reaching 

 as far as the anal angle, the longer hiiKhvings being often geniculate in the middle of the distal margin, or angu- 

 larly protended. The row of distal marginal spots of the hindwing is always absent, the hindwings, however, 

 show in the disk more or less parallel transverse stripes. The sexual dimorphism which is not noticed in Euryhia 

 is here the rule and mostly very much pronounced. The Mesosemia are distributed over the whole of tropical 

 South America and over Central America including Mexico, but they do not cross the frontier of the United 

 States. The butterflies are often met with on blossoms, still oftener on leaves, but they seem to rest much 

 on their under surface in order to come forth only for a short time for the sake of copulation and feeding. Then 

 they perform jerky movements on the leaves, stretching the antennae straight forward, placing the hindwings 

 flat on the leaf and slightly raising the forewings. In this manner they hasten from one leaf to another, from 

 one branch to another, more jumping than flying, as F.iS.SL expresses himself. The butterflies are partly extre- 

 mely local and some of them are very rare. 



I. Group. {acuta-Gvou\)). 



Apex of the for e w i n g e x t e n d e d into a s h a r p [) o int. 



M. acuta Hew. (124 c). This rare butterfly is known to me only from the Organ Mountains from "'■"'". 

 where also the figured specimen originates. Neither v. Bo><^'iisGHAUSEN nor myself have observed it, however 

 much we have been collecting there. A ^ in the Coll. v. Bo^^!INGHAUSE]Sl is said to originate from Sa. Catharina. 

 Above, the r^ is velvety blackish-brown with a lighter margin of the wings. Characteristic is the sickle-shaped 

 point of the forewings and the 4 slit eyes in the cells of the under surface. 



