so)ne new species of Lijcccna. 529 



(sucli as L. Asopus, Hopf.) which are taiUess; in fact, 

 while L. Parsimon usually possesses tails, some races of 

 the species appear to be destitute of them {vide Mr. 

 Trimen's very interesting paper on the butterflies of 

 Basuto-land, m Trans. Ent. So. Lond. 1870, p. 361). 

 Again, L. Mindora, Feld., is tailed ; but the closely allied 

 L. Arruana, Feld., is destitute of such an appendage. L. 

 Cassius, Cram., has no tail, Avhile my L. pseudo-Cassius, 

 which is so closely allied to it that Mr. Hewitson considers 

 it not to be distinct, in spite of the enormous difference in 

 locality (Queensland, as opposed to tropical America), has 

 a well developed tail. 



In the Danis group (I only use the word for con- 

 venience) the presence or absence of a tail appears imma- 

 terial. Witness L. Ilissus, Feld., tailed; L. Taygetus, 

 Feld., tailless. The foregoing observations appear to me 

 sufficient to prove that the characters in question, although 

 still relied on by some Entomologists as of generic value, 

 can in no way be depended on ; and that if the genus 

 Lycana is to be divided, we must find some better charac- 

 ter on which to found our new genera. 



I will only add further that the two characters on which 

 I have just remarked are by no means always to be found 

 united. Many species which possess metallic spots at the 

 anal angle of the hindwing are not tailed, e. g., L. Jesous, 

 Gucr, L. Cassius, Cram., and Z. Ceraunus, Fabr. ; while 

 more rarely tailed species are destitute of the metallic 

 spots. This is the case with some species of the Castalius 

 group. 



But for Mr. Moore's repeatedly expressed opinion, that 

 the insect described in this paper as L. Indica, was un- 

 described, I should have been inclined to doubt whether 

 it were distinct from his L. Sanyra. 



