22 L. de Niceville — Butterflies of the subgenus TrongSb. [No. 1, 



In the Malay Peninsnln, distantii, Moore, was described from a 

 single specimen from Province Wellesley (in Sumatra it is tlie common 

 and dominant Crastia) , but godartii has been recorded by Mr. Distant from 

 Singapore, probably erroneously, and Dr. Moore has described Grastia 

 graminifera from the "Malay Peninsula" apparently from a unique male 

 example in Mr. Oberthiir's collection. He compares it with vermiculata, 

 Butler, but from the description it would appear to be nothing but a 

 form of G. distantii, Moore, with rather smaller spots than in the 

 typical specimens of that species ; an obviously variably character in 

 my large series of that species. Mr. Distant in his " Rhopalocera 

 Malayana " ignores graminifera altogether. 



In Indo-China, which includes Siam, godartii is the commonest 

 species. Dr. Moore recoi-ds Grastia amymone, Godart, originally de- 

 scribed from Amboina, from Cocliin China, a species I am quite unable 

 to recognise from the original description, and Dr. Arnold Pagen- 

 stecher says in his paper on the butterflies of Amboina that he has not 

 seen it from thence. Lastly, Dr. Moore describes a Menama mouhotii 

 from Cambodia, of which I have a typical male from Chentaboon in 

 Siam. This species has no male brand, and the wings are broader and 

 more rounded than in typical Grastia. It therefore is an analogous 

 species to nicevillei and subdita, and in my opinion is nothing but an 

 aberrant form of layardi { = bingliami), which again equals godartii 

 {=siamensis). If my conjectures are right, it is very remarkable that 

 the subgenus Grastia should have given rise to three aberrant forms in 

 three well-defined regions, all differing one from the other and in differ- 

 ent ways from the parent forms. Grastia appears to be in a highly 

 plastic state. 



From China proper five species have been recorded— hiiibergi, Wal- 

 lengren, of which lorquinii, Felder, and felderi, Butler, are I believe 

 synonyms ; godartii, Lucas (these two species occur together in Hong- 

 kong, and are I believe distinct) ; amymone, Godart, the Amboina 

 species twice before mentioned ; and prunosa, Moore. This latter is 

 described from the very vague locality " China " apparently from a single 

 male in M. Oberthiir's collection. If it should be found to occur in 

 Hongkong it will probably prove to be a synonym of kinbergi. 



In the Nicobar Isles we have a single species of Grastia, the scJier- 

 zeri of Felder, which was I believe originally wrongly labelled from 

 Ceylon, and is therefore almost certainly the camorta of Moore.* It is 

 not a true Crastia, as although it has the Crastia brand on the forewing 

 in the male, it has as well the secondary sexual characters of Menama 

 on the hindwing, which are not found in true Crastia. 



* Vide de Niceville, Journ. A.S.B., vol. Ixviii, pt. 2, p. 178 (1899). 



