76 SOUTH-AFRICAN BUTTERFLIES. 



This is the darkest of the South- African species of Pseudonympha, and is, 

 moreover, peculiar in the dense fulvous hair coating the basal area of the wings. 

 The specimens taken by me in ISTamaqualand in 1873 were considerably smaller 

 than ordinary examples, expanding only i in. 4-6 lin. 



It is the first of the genus to appear in the spring, in some seasons occurring 

 as early as the end of July, but is not long out, disappearing towards the end of 

 September. It frequents mountain-sides and rocky situations of some eleva- 

 tion, often sitting on large stones, and sometimes on flowers ; its flight is very 

 low, feeble, and irregular. About Cape Town it is abundant, but in other 

 western districts I have not noticed many specimens ; and to the eastward of 

 the district of Worcester it is not known to occur. I captured the paired sexes 

 near Cape Town on the 9th September 1870. 



Localities of Pseudonympha Hyperbius} 



I. South Africa. 

 A. Cape Colony. 



a. Western Districts. — Cape Town. Kalbas Ivraal, Cape District. 

 Malmesbury. Piketberg. Ookiep. Springbokfontein and 

 Tweefontein, Namaqualand District. Konstabel's, Worcester 

 District. 



9. (2.) Pseudonympha irrorata (Trimen). 



Erebia irrorata, Trim., Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond., 1873, p. i03> P^- i- ^- 2. 



Uxp. al., {$) I in. 5 lin. ; ($) i in. 6-y lin. 



Pale greyish-brown. Fore-wing : a fulvous patcli occupies discoidal 

 cell, not rising above it, but extending beyond it and over median 

 nervules to about their middle, as well as below median nervure and 

 its first nervule, but not reaching submedian nervure or quite to base ; 

 touching extremity of upper portion of patch, a bipupillate black ocellus 

 in a pale yellowish-grey ring; costal margin iiulistinctly hatched with 

 greyish-yelloiv from base to beyond middle. Hind-wing without mark- 

 ings. Under side. — Hind-wing and costal and apical region, with hind- 

 margin of fore-wing irrorated with greyish-yellow. Fore-wing : fulvous 

 patch slightly smaller than on upper side ; ring of ocellus paler, more 

 distinct. Hind-wing : beyond middle a submarginal row of eight ill- 

 defined greyish-yellow spots ; preceding fourth spot, and between it 

 and extremity of discoidal cell, a similar spot ; an indistinct similar 

 spot near base, between median and submedian nervures ; two smaller 

 ones on edge of cell, marking origins of radial and second subcostal ner- 

 vules ; and two or three small ones on costa before middle. In both 

 wings, on hind-marginal edge, a row of small, inter-nervular, greyish- 

 yellow spots, more apparent in hind-wing than in fore-wing. 



The sexes do not differ, except that the irrorations and spots of the 

 under side of the wings are more conspicuous in the $. 



^ In Rhopalocera Africoi Australis (ii. p. 198) I noted that a specimen of P. Hyperhius in 

 the British Museum was registered as having been collected in "Afghanistan." No confir- 

 mation of this surprising habitat has been given ; and it is extremely unlikely that the 

 butterfly should occur so far from the known range of its genus. 



