LYC.ENA. 337 



705. Lycsena astrarche *, Bergstr. (Papilio) Nomencl. iii, 1779, pi. 49, 



figs. 7, 8 : Stand. (Lycsena) Cat. Lep. i, 1901, p. 83. 

 Polyommatus nazira, Moore, P. Z. S. 1865, p. 504, pi. 31, fig. 4. 

 Lycsena medon, de N. (cipud Hufnayel), Butt. Ind. iii, 1890, p. 69. 



3 $ Upperside : brown with a silky sheen in certain lights. 

 Fore wing : a black spot on the discocellulars. Hind wing : an 

 anticiliary black line. Fore and hind wings : a subterminal, 

 transverse, slightly curved series of black spots, inwardly bordered 

 by a transverse series of orange-red lunules ; cilia white, spotted 

 inwardly at the terminations of the veins with black. Underside : 

 ground-colour a warm dark grey. Fore wing : a spot on the 

 discocellulars, a transverse, discal, bisinuate series of seven spots, 

 a transverse, subterminaJ, slightly curved series of six spots and 

 an anticiliary line, black ; the discocellular spot and the discal 

 spots encircled with white, the subterminal spots inwardly bordered 

 by larger orange-red spots, which in turn are inwardly margined 

 narrowly with black, the anterior ones with specks of white again 

 on their inner sides ; outwardly the spots of the subterminal series 

 are conspicuously bordered with white ; cilia grey. Hind wing : 

 a transverse, subbasal series of four spots, followed by a spot in 

 middle of interspace 7, another at the base of interspace 6, a speck 

 on the discocellulars, and an outwardly oblique, somewhat sinuate 

 posterior, discal series of five spots, black, all enclosed with white 

 which colour forms a comparatively large postdiscal patch ; beyond 

 is a strongly curved series of nine orange-red larger spots succeeded 

 by a subterminal similarly curved series of seven black spots on a 

 white ground, and an anticiliary black line ; the tornal three of 

 the orange-red series of spots are coalescent ; cilia white, dusky 

 grey at the terminations of the veins. Antennae, head, thorax 

 and abdomen brown, the shafts of the antennae ringed with white ; 

 beneath : the club of the antennee, the palpi, thorax and abdomen 

 white, the palpi with some stiff black hairs. 



Exp. <5 $ 26-29 mm. (1-04-M1"). 



Hub. The Palaearctic Region (except the Polar area). Within 

 our limits, the Himalayas : Chitral, Kashmir, Simla to Kumaon ; 

 Baluchistan. 



706. Lycsena iris, Staudinrjer, Stett. ent. Zeit. 1886, p. 207; G>:-Grshim. 

 Rom. Mem., Lep. iv, 1890, p. 378, pi. 7, fig. 8. 



cT $ . Upperside : uniform rich silky brown. Fore and hind 

 wings : short, black, transverse streaks or elongate spots on the disco- 

 cellulars ; in some specimens, in addition, there are one or two 



* The specific names alexis var. 1, Scopoli, and medon, Hufnagel (nee Esper), 

 have priority over astrarche, Bergstrasser, but the former name has been, and is 

 still by many authors, applied to our common English " blue," while Hufnagel's 

 description of his "medon" is quite insufficient. 



YOL. II. Z 



