Zoological Society. 305 



The wings of ^S*. Mimosce are pale yellowish -green with the apical 

 margin waved, that of the fore-wings of the male being somewhat more 

 emarginate than in the female. The eosta of the fore-wings is broadly 

 purplish-grey, much-irrorated with white ; beyond the middle arises 

 on the costa an oblique dark chestnut spot, which emits an undulating 

 line across the wing (which forms a waved fascia in the female), and 

 near the tip of the wing the pale costa is separated from the green 

 ground by a dark chestnut dash. In both sexes the anal angle of the 

 fore-wings is occupied by a grey-brown patch which extends narrowly 

 into the wing parallel with the outer margin ; the incisures of all 

 the wings are tinged with chestnut-purple ; from the middle of the 

 pale costa of the fore-wings arises a purplish-brown spot to which is 

 attached the ocellus, which is rather small, oval and transverse ; the 

 centre formed of a small glassy spot surrounded by fleshy-brown and 

 this by yellow, more orange-coloured on the side towards the base of 

 the wings, where it is also surmounted by a black-brown lunule pow- 

 dered with white scales along its middle. The hind-wings are more 

 uniformly green above, with an ocellus similar to that of the fore- 

 wings, the anal angle produced into a slender tail longer than the 

 body of the wing and spatulated at its extremity ; this tail is chestnut- 

 brown throughout its narrow part, where it is much-powdered with 

 white, the dilated apical part being green. The body is yellow and 

 the antennae are fulvous. 



The underside resembles the upper, except that the undulating 

 line beyond the middle of the wing is wanting, and is replaced by a 

 similar one nearer to the outer margin of the wing, and running along 

 the hind-wings. 



The underside of the abdomen is marked with purple spots along 

 the apical margin of the segments. The antennse of the males are 

 very broad, emitting 50 rays on each side, the five or six terminal 

 joints with very short rays. The rays on each side of each joint 

 arise at a little distance from the base and extremity of each joint, so 

 that there is a more decided space between the second ray of one joint 

 and the first ray of the next joint than usual. 



The veins of the fore-wings are arranged as in the typical Saturnice, 

 and those of the hind-wings as in S. Mcenas (as exhibited in my figure 

 above referred to) and as in S. Luna, the peculiarity in the subgeneric 

 group Actias of Leach containing the above-named species, being 

 that the three branches of the median vein of the hind-wings are 

 compressed closely together, arising on the inside of the ocellus and 

 extending into the long tail, a transverse vein running across the 

 middle of the ocellus, closing the discoidal cell, and uniting the inner 

 branch of the post-costal vein with the outer branch of the median 

 vein. 



Boisduval informs us that this species " est tres commune a quatre 

 a cinq lieues dans I'interieur du pays sur les Mimosa. Les cafres se 

 servent du cocon qui est tres-gros et tres-solide pour se faire des 

 tabatieres. Pour cela ils y font un trou pour cxtraire la chrysalide, 

 et ils le bouchent ensuite avec une cheville de bois." 



A beautiful figure of this species is given by Mr. Angas in his 

 plate of Zoolu Moths, fig. 18. 



Ann. §• Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 2. Vol v. 20 



