458 Mr. A. G. Butler on some African 



from time to time we witness, as it were, a rupture or a recall 

 to order which is sometimes fatal. 



If an organ is too rapidly modified hy a particular prepon- 

 derant influence for the rest of the organism to follow it continu- 

 ously in an equilibrate manner^ it frequently happens^ either 

 that the progress of the variability is arrested in this first direc- 

 tion, or that the variety in course of formation is extiyiguished 

 under these new conditions. 



Nature, fortunately, is not so hasty as man in her require- 

 ments; she has had and still has ample time in which to 

 work. 



XLV. — Descriptions of several African and Australian Lepi- 

 doptera in the Collection of the British Museum. By Aethur 

 a Butler, F.L.S., F.Z.S., &c. 



Four of the new species here described have recently been 

 selected from a small collection, of great interest, made at Lake 

 Nyassa by F. A. A. Simons. This collection was especially 

 rich in two species of Papilio {P. porthaon of Hewitson, a 

 butterfly new to the Museum series, and P. nyassce^ here 

 described) ; there were also several forms of the difficult genus 

 Teracolus (but chiefly identical with those from Natal), several 

 species of Acraia (one of which will probably prove to be new 

 to science), a few obscure little species oiLyccena and Pampihila, 

 a little black-and-white Liptena ?, and several very striking 

 moths. 



The Eockhampton collection contained (besides the beauti- 

 ful Sphinges here described) several obscure forms of Noc- 

 tuites and Crambites, an example of Catopsilia hinda, and 

 other named species which were previously desiderata to the 

 Museum. 



Ehopalocera. 

 1. Mycalesis Simonsiiy n. sp. 



^ ? . Wings above sandy yellow, with a straight, trans- 

 verse, pale-bordered, light brown postmedian line across both 

 wings ; costal and apical areas of primaries red-brown, parti- 

 cularly in the female, the base and outer border more or less 

 tinted with the same colour ; the margin and a submarginal 

 line darker brown ; two white-pupilled black ocelli, one small 

 towards the apex, the other large between the first and second 

 median branches : secondaries with six more or less strongly 

 indicated discal black dots ; outer margin red-brown ; female 

 with a slender submarginal red-brown line. Under surface 



