CHAI-. X.] THE PAL.E ARCTIC REGION. 187 



strengthen our view of their radical distinctness, by showing to 

 how considerable an extent the foiiner is inhabited by peculiai-, 

 and often very remarkable generic types. 



Insects: Lcpidoptcra. — The Diurnal Lepidoptera, or butterflies, 

 are uot very abundant in species, their number being probably 

 somewhat over 500, and tliese belong to not more than fifty genera. 

 But no less than fifteen of these genera are m liolly confined to 

 the region. Nine of the families are represented, as follows : — 



1. Dcniaidtv; having only a single species in South Europe. 



2. Satyr idoi ; well represented, there being more than 100 species 

 in Europe, and three peculiar genera. 3. Nyinphalidm ; rather 

 poorly represented, Europe having only about sixty species, but 

 there is one peculiar genus. 4. Lihytheidce ; a very small family, 

 represented by a single species occurring in South Europe. 

 5. Nemeohiidce ; a rather small family, also liaving only one 

 species in Europe, but which constitutes a peculiar genera. 

 G. Lyccenidce ; an extensive family, fairly represented, having 

 about eighty European species ; there are two peculiar genera 

 in the Palaarctic region. 7. Picridce ; rather poorly represented 

 with thirty-two European species ; two of the genera are, how- 

 ever, peculiar. 8. Fcq)ilionidce ; very poorly I'cpresented in 

 Europe with only twelve species, but there are many more in 

 Siberia and Japan. No less than five of the small number of 

 genera in this family are wholly confined to the region, a 

 fact of nmch importance, and which to a great extent redeems 

 the character of the Paloearctic i-egion as regard this order of 

 insects. Their names are Mtsapia, Hypermnestra, Doritis, 

 Sericinus, and Thais ; and besides these we have Parnassius — 

 the " Apollo " butterflies — highly characteristic, and only found 

 elsewhere in the mountains of tlie Nearctic region. 9. Hes- 

 feridoi ; poorly represented with about thirty European species, 

 and one peculiar genus. 



Four families of Sphingina occur in the Palffiarctic region, 

 and there are several peculiar genera. 



In the Zygmnida: there are two exclusively European genera, 

 and the extensive genus Zygcena is itself mainly Pala^arctic. 

 The small family Stygiidce has two out of its three genera 



