33 



palpi long, divergent, rather thick, and scantily clothed with 

 hair, except in Actinote. Wings rounded, rather long, never 

 dentated or tailed ; wing-cells closed, sub-median nervure of 

 the fore-wings not forked at the base ; median nervure simple ; 

 abdomen long, sometimes with a horny appendage in the 

 female. 



Range. The Acraina are unknown in the Patearctic and 

 Nearctic Regions, but are very abundant in Africa, south of the 

 Sahara, and in Madagascar. Two species only are found 

 in the Indian Region, but several inhabit Australia, New 

 Guinea, and some of the adjacent islands. One genus (Acti- 

 note) is peculiar to Tropical America, and is rathe*: numerous 

 in species. 



Habits. The Acrczina are generally weak flyers, frequenting 

 gardens and weedy places, and flying low ; but some of the 

 woodland species have a higher and stronger flight. In Africa 

 they replace our smaller Fritillaries, to which many of the 

 species have a general resemblance. They are gregarious 

 insects, and often very abundant 



NOTE. The Acrceina are a protected group of Butterflies, 

 though less so than the Danaince^ and are mimicked by 

 various species of Nymphalina and Papilionina. It is even 

 thought that the great West African Drurya antimachus 

 (Drury), the largest of all African Butterflies, which often 

 measures 8 or 9 inches across its long and narrow wings, has 

 been modified in the direction of Acrcea, if it is not an actual 

 mimic of some gigantic extinct, or at present undiscovered, 

 Acrcea. 



Most of the Old World species are red or tawny, spotted 

 with black ; a large number are more or less transparent, 

 especially on the fore-wings; others are black, with white, 

 yellow, or reddish transverse bands or spots ; the American 



