342 Mr. n. VV. Bates's Contributions 



in any part of the Amazon region except the neiglibourhood of Par^. In its 

 habits it resembles P. Vertumuus, and is never seen out of llie shades of the forest, 



P. Mneas $ , Lin. Roesel, Ins. ix. t. 2, f. 2 {Mneas). 

 Cram. 279 C. D. (as jEneas, L. ? ). 

 $ , Hiibn. Samml. Ex. t. 121 (as Marcius), 



This species offers no notable variation in either sex. It is, at the same time, of 

 very limited range, having been found only in Guiana and the southern part of 

 the Delta of the Amazons, at Para. In the latter district it is always fuuud in 

 company witii P. Vetlumiius. 



P. Bolivar S , Hewits. Tr. Ent. Soc. 1851, p. 97, pi. 10, f. 2. 

 ? , Gray, Cat. B. M. pi. 10, f. 7. 



From Para to the mouth of the Rio Negro neither P. Mneas nor any form 

 lesembling it occurs; but on the Upper Amazons, at Ega, there is found the 

 present species, apparently very distinct from jEneas ; but from the similarity of 

 its habits, and from the fact that in all its marks of difference analogous cases aie 

 offered by other local forms, which from having ihem less in degree aie consideied 

 as mere varieties of their type, 1 am inclined to consider it as a geographical 

 variety of that species. At Para, P. jEneaa flies in company with P. Vertunuius ; 

 in the same way P. Bolivar has this species for companion at Ega; but Ver- 

 tumuus has only changed in some individuals (F. Cuiuia), whilst Bolivar has 

 totally varied fiom its type. P. Culora, however, in the points where it differs 

 from Vertumnu&, differs in the same direction in which P. Bolivar does from P. 

 jEiieas ; viz. the green spot of the fore wing changes to olivaceous, and the led 

 spot of iiind wing beneath to yellow ; the contrast in colour, however, being more 

 strongly marked in the one than in the other case. The J has changed from the 

 5 £neas far more than has the same sex in Culora from its type ; but only in 

 the substitution of yellow for crimson on the hind wings, a change of colour which 

 we shall see has a tendency to occur in other species (P. Palros, Gray). Some 

 note should also be taken of the greater isolation of P. Bolivar in its geographical 

 relations to its type, and also of the important fact, which a close study of species 

 in natural history will reveal, that species differ immensely amongst each other 

 in their susceptibility of change. Susceptibility of change, power of adaptation 

 with or without change to new local circumstances, are qualities or characters of 

 species, just as mucii as bodily structure or peculiar instincts. The subject of 

 " representative species" was constantly forced on my attention during my travels. 

 After becoming thoroughly familiar with the productions of one region during 

 several years' residence, I have at different times, removed to another several 

 hundred miles distant, and have been then obliged to notice the changes of ap- 

 pearance that many of my old friends had put on ; some more, others less; whilst 

 some had assumed quite the form of new and distinct species. It is not, however, 

 all the allied species thus lepresenting each other that can be consideied in the 

 light of having varied the one from the other; there are cases in which two such 



scription of it. P. Phosphorus, nob. $ . Shape of P. Hierocles, the opalescent 

 crimson macular belt of the hind wing consisting of four spots (with a fifth very 

 minute), placed exactly as in examples of ///ecoc/cs; fore wing with a broad, short, 

 triangular grey-green spot in the middle of its hind margin, the apex nearly reaching 

 the second median nervule, and having two minute white specks in it, one behind 

 the second, the other behind the first median nervule. Ueraerara. Tiiis insect 

 is especially interesting as serving to connect still closer the forms between P. Ver- 

 tumuus and P. Proleus. If the presence of connecting links obliges us to sink two 

 species into one, these two forms ought to be considered as one species, that is, one 

 of them as a local modification of the other; how is it then that one of the local 

 varieties, Hierocles, presents tlie most distinct attribute of a true species, in asso- 

 ciatinj; with Vertumuus without amalgamating with it] 



