3;i0 LEPIDOPTEEA INDICA. 



Expanse of wings, ,? ? 1-fo to 1/^ inclies. 



Larva. — Cylindrical, segment 12 slightly swollen laterally round the spiracles ; anal 

 segment somewhat narrow-looking in consequence, sloping and applied closely to the 

 leaf, head rough, on the surface finely, and sparsely hairy, shiny, light yellow-green in 

 colour, suffused with brown, a black-brown marginal band of varying width, a central 

 1)and of the same colour splitting along the sides of the clypeus, and a line on each 

 side of the central baud parallel to it, reaching half-way up the face ; segment 2 

 thickened in the centre, with a thin dorsal black collar from spiracle to spiracle ; colour 

 of body is greyish-green, with conspicuous brown spiracles ; body shortly hairy round 

 the margin, and covered with minute setiferous tubercles, the setse being also minute. 

 Length, 32 '5 mm. 



Pupa. — Circular in transverse section ; constriction nearly nil, proboscis free 

 beyond the wings to the centre of segment 10 ; spiracular expansions of segment 2 

 large, facing forwards, slightly raised, brown ; colour of pupa very light, watery 

 yellow-green, the abdomen being a dirty whitish-yellow, covered with white powder in 

 the cell. It is stout. Length, 20 mm. 



Habits. — The larva makes an extremely tight cell of several blades, clothing it 

 inside so densely with silk that it is difficult to tear open ; the cell is thickly powdered 

 inside ; it is cylindrical ; the final cell in which the pupa takes place is made generally 

 low down near the stem of the plant. The larva feeds upon Oriza sativa (rice), and on 

 certain grasses. 



The insect is the commonest butterfly in the district, swarming together with 

 11. suhochracea, Moore, around and in every rice field at all seasons of the year when 

 the rice is green, and around flowers in the rains ; it is c[uick of flight, but is easily 

 cauQ-ht when feedinc; on flowers. The larva is to be had in the rains in hundreds in 

 the rice fields. We have bred great numbers of it. (Davidson, Bell and Aitken. ) 



Habitat. — India, Ceylon, Burma, Formosa, Hong Kong, Malay Peninsula and 

 Archipelago. 



Distribution. — The types are from Ceylon, it is a common species, recorded from 

 many parts of Southern India, Ceylon and Burma ; it does not appear to occur 

 anywhere very far north ; we have it from Belgaum in South India, we took it at 

 Bombay, and- have it from Rangoon, and many other localities ; Watson records it from 

 the Chin Hills ; Davidson, Bell and Aitken from Karwar, where they bred it ; Elwes 

 from Perak, Java and Borneo ; Butler from Formosa, J. J. Walker from Hong Kong ; 

 de Niceville from Calcutta, Cachar and Sumatra ; de Niceville * says that, in his 

 opinion, it is quite distinct from P. guttata, and we have come to the same conclusion ; 

 all Plotz's types came from Java. 



* Journ. As. Soc. Bengal, 1895, p. 550. 



