14 THE LEPIDOPTERA OF CEYLON. 



Genus MELANITIS. 



Mdanitis, Fabricius, Illiger's Mag. vi. p. 282 (1807). 

 Hipio, Hiibner, Verz. bek. Schmett. p. 56 (1816). 

 Cijllo, Boiiduval, Voy. Astr. Lep. p. 140 (1832). 



Wings sliorfc, broad; forewing triangular; costa very convex, exterior margin 

 more or less angled below tte apex, oblique and waved liindward ; posterior margin 

 nearly straight ; first and second subcostal branches emitted before end of tbe cell, 

 third at half distance beyond, fourth and fifth at one-third from apex ; upper disco- 

 cellular twice angled near subcostal, lower obliquely concave; radials from the 

 angles ; median branches wide apart ; submedian recurved : hindwing, costa slightly 

 arched, exterior margin sinuous and produced at end of upper median into a blunt 

 angle ; abdominal margin long ; costal vein ciirved, extending to apex, with a short 

 basal spur ; subcostal bent close to costal near its base ; cell broad ; discocellulars 

 bent outward at their middle; radial from the angle ; upper median from end of the 

 cell, second from near its end ; submedian extending to posterior angle ; internal 

 short. Body short ; palpi porrect, pilose beneath, legs slender, squamose ; antennae 

 slender. 



MELANITIS ISMENE (Plate 10, Fig. 2 a, b). 



Pajnlio Ismenc, Cramer, Pap. Exot. i. pi. 26, f. A, B (1775). 



Male and female. Upperside dark olive-brown, exterior border slightly grey 

 speckled : forewing with apical area dark maroon-brown, a subapical large black spot 

 bordered above and inwardly by fulvous-red and centred with two small prominent 

 white spots : hindwing with four submarginal more or less obsolete very small 

 black-bordered white spots. Underside very variable, being either grey, ochreous, 

 ferruginous, maroon, or dusky brown, covered with numerous short more or less 

 confluent black strigge : forewing with two subbasal and a discal transverse darker 

 fascia, the outer broadest and most prominent, two subapical and two sma,ller apical 

 white spots : hindwing with a subbasal, discal, and a submarginal transverse darker 

 fascia, the discal being most prominent, a submarginal row of small white spots. 

 Female brighter coloured on the upper and underside, the strigas not so dense, and 

 the transverse fasciae less prominent. Body brown, palpi greyish, legs brown above 

 ochreous-grey beneath. 



Expanse 2| to 3 mches. 



Larva elongated, thickened in the middle, pubescent, head large, surmounted by 

 two short pubescent red processes, last segment also with two processes ; pale green 

 with longitudinal rows of whitish dots ; dorsal and lateral line darker green ; head 



