X, D, 5 Wileman: Japanese Lepidoptera, Part II " 287 



With Vanessa drilon Fruhst. the series of the blue-banded subspecies 

 begins. In contrast to no-japonica the white spotting on the apical area 

 of the forewing is reduced. The female hardly differs from the male. 



BLUE-BANDED SUBSPECIES 



Vanessa drilon Fruhst. (9, 527). From Formosa, 1,500 to 2,000 meters 



(4,000 to 6,000 feet), at Chip-chip and on the borders of Dragon and 



Le-hiku Lakes. 

 Vanessa charonides Stichel (1, 206, PI. 63, c^, and underside, figured as 



canace Linn. (9, 328). From eastern Siberia (Amurland and Ussuri), 



western China, and Korea. 

 Vanessa charonia Drury (1, 206; 9, 528). From eastern and southern 



China, Hongkong, ? Tonkin, Assam, Hainan; larva on Smilax, 



gregarious in December. 

 All the forms found in continental India are comprised under the 

 general name of canace, but it is not necessary to refer to them here. 



The larva figured (Plate I, fig. 17) was taken October 15, 

 1900, at Yoshino, Yamato Province, Honshu, on a spiny creeper 

 which my Japanese collector named sankirai {Heterosmilax 

 japonica Kth.). Pryer and Miyajima, however, give the name 

 of the food plant as saru-tori-ibara (Smilax china Linn.), and 

 this is probably the correct name of the creeper figured (Plate I, 

 fig. 18). The larva also appears to feed on Smilax china in 

 Hongkong according to Kershaw, and I have found it on a species 

 of Smilax in the mountains of Benguet subprovince, Luzon. I 

 have also found the larva on a species of lily growing in a garden 

 at Atami, Honshu, feeding in a semigregarious state. A male 

 imago emerged from the pupa resulting from my larva, which 

 is probably referable to the form glauconia^= no-japonica, but 

 the date of emergence was not recorded. 



Another larva was taken at Tokyo May 2, 1894. The larva 

 appears to be very liable to attack by ichneumon flies, as I have 

 taken it on many occasions, but have only once succeeded in 

 rearing it, all the other larvse having been infested with ichneu- 

 mons and dying before coming to maturity. My figure of the 

 larva is not very good, as it was just preparing to pupate. The 

 one given by Kershaw in Butterflies of Hongkong and south- 

 eastern China is an excellent figure, and his description of the 

 full-grown larva, which is given below as well as descriptions of 

 the ova and pupa, agrees with my figure. 



Ova sub-conical, multi-angled longitudinally, the angles whitish, the rest 

 green. Laid singly on the upper side of leaves of Smilax china Linn., a 

 very prickly climber with scarlet berries, native to China, Cochin China 

 and Japan. Fam. Liliaceae. 



Larva, very young; head black, general colour shiny yellow brown, base 

 of spines light yellow. Later, general colour grayish maculated with dark 

 brown, the yellow of the base of the spines suffused and almost forming a 



