Notes on the Life History of Papilio demolion. 457 



I now recalled having more than once observed these little 

 pinnacles of ova on lime and lemon leaves when I had 

 been searching for the larvae of other Papilios, but attri- 

 buting them to the eccentricities of some moth, had thought 

 no more about it. These, however, I, of course, took care- 

 fully back to the hotel, and on Feb. 14, eight days later (the 

 usual period with Papilios being five or six days) nine out 

 of the ten ova became healthy little larvae. 



They hatched on the morning of the day I was leaving 

 Soekaboemi, and the next day I was on board ss. Houtman, 

 the Dutch steamer, en route for Brisbane; but of course 

 I was feeding them on lime leaves, which I felt sure 

 would always be procurable at all the different ports we 

 were to touch at on the way. 



The young larvae were very distinct from other Papilios, 

 being of a deep bright ochre-yellow all over, very shiny 

 in appearance, and most sociable in their habits, for always 

 when not feeding they would sit closely packed together 

 on one leaf, and if one or two for a short time got isolated 

 from this family gathering they soon rejoined the group. 



These larvae had been slow to hatch, but they had evi- 

 dently no intention of being slow to grow now that they had 

 hatched, for once outside their egg-shells they grew rapidly, 

 the first moult being successfully achieved when only three 

 days old, and they moulted again three days later, so that 

 when only a week old they were already in the third skin. 

 Unfortunately two died, but the remaining seven were 

 getting on just as well as though they were on dry land, in 

 fact I think the heat of my cabin was partly accountable 

 for their rapid progress. They retained their bright ochre 

 colour, with no white markings of any kind, throughout 

 the first four stages, and they also retained their preference 

 for each other's society, especially just before a moult was 

 due to take place, when two or three would lie side by side 

 awaiting the event. 



Just before the end of the fourth stage a greenish tinge 

 was visible beneath the shiny surface of ochre-yellow. 

 This larvae at the beginning of the fifth moult was one of 

 the prettiest I have ever seen, the usual green being re- 

 placed by a soft cobalt blue, only very slightly tinged with 

 green, which, however, deepened as they grew older, though 

 the blue tone was always the most prevalent, until the 

 larva was hanging up for pupation, and then it entirely 

 gave place to pale green. 



