42 NATURAL HISTORY. 



about grassy plains during the monsoon, laying its eggs on & 

 minute leguminous weed among the grass. Hecahe proper feeds on 

 several leguminous plants, but seems to forsake all else for Sesbanm 

 aculeata, already mentioned as the food of Taruciis plinius. 



HeSPERHDJI. 



The Hesperiida seem to me to be very much over classified. 

 Nothing is gained by dividing a group of butterflies so much alike' 

 in all stages of their existence into such a multitude of genera, and 

 I very much doubt whether it wilJ not be found necessary; as our 

 knowledge of their life history advances, to re-arrange the whole 

 family, dividing some of the present genera and uniting others. 



106. Oangara thyrsis. — I do not think I have met with this 

 species out of Bombay, and there it is capriciously distributed, beiug 

 common in some gardens and absent from others. It comes out 

 before dawn and after sunset, and is always at flowers, particularly 

 those of lilies. 



107. Pratapa alexis. — This species is very abundant in the 

 country surrounding Bombay during the rains. I have found it also 

 in fields of lucerne grass in Poona during the hot weather in 

 company with the next. It feeds chiefly in the morning. As t he- 

 stout thorax indicates, it is one of the strongest of butterflies on 

 the wing. 



108. Badumia exclamationis. — This is common everywhere while 

 the rain lasts, swarming about duranta and other plants with small 

 flowers, especially in the early morning. When crossing the Bom- 

 bay harbour about the month of September one meets hundreds of 

 hespernda? flying over the sea, this being one of the most plentiful. 



110. Parnara naroda. •— I know little about this. We have 

 two specimens. 



P. bada. — We have only one specimen, 



110. C. mathias. — This is about the commonest of the family 

 during the rains. The larva feeds on a common grass, stitching the 

 edges of a leaf together so as to form a tube, in which it lives, 

 coming out to feed at night. It passes the pupa state in the same 

 shelter. 



111. G. agna. — I believe I have- bred this on rice. The larvae- 

 has the same habit as the last. 



112. Suastus gremiv.s — This is not uncommon in Bombay and 

 Poona, being very similar in habits to the last two. 



