MOTHS AND BUTTERFllES. 499 



Our beautiful P. ajax, with its numerous varietal forms, has wide distribution through 

 the states, having been taken from New York to Texas, and westward as far as the 

 Mississip2:)i valley. It is well known to lovers of nature, its greenish-white wings, 

 sti-eaked or striped with black, with a bright patch of crimson at the anal extremity 

 of the lower pair, ij'endering it a very conspicuous object. The caterpillars feed upon 

 Asimina triloba (papaw), and in their outline and color are somewhat similar to those 

 of the more familiar P- turnus. P. daunics is a very fine insect, closely allied to 

 P. turnus, in which the secondaries have three tails. It is found in California, Arizona, 

 and various parts of Mexico. Twenty species, or at least strongly marked forms, of 

 true Papilio may be credited to the United States. 



Throughout the tropical regions of the American continent is found, in large 

 numbers of individuals, a group of species remarkable for the black velvety ground- 

 color of the wings, with red, green, and purplish blotches upon them. They are very 

 beautiful insects, and notable from the fact that the sexes differ so considerably as to 

 have been, in frequent instances, described by eminent entomologists as distinct 

 species. The caterpillars are various shades' of green and brown, with bands and 

 stripes of yellow, red, and blue ; the fourth, fifth, and sometimes the sixth segments 

 elevated into a hump, and armed with variously-formed protuberances. Probably of 

 this group at least forty species are now known. 



In another section of the New World Papilios the hind wings have a very sharp, 

 narrow, long tail, while their colors are various shades of orange and yellow, and still 

 another large group, numerous both in species and individuals, has the wings clear or 

 greenish white, striped with black, with a few red or yellow spots on the margin of the 

 lower pair. It may be said that nearly one hundred and fifty species of true Papilio 

 are already known as natives of various portions of the American continent. 



Many grand species are found in Africa, and especially upon the west coast, one of 

 the most striking being P. zalmoxis. This fine insect is very aberrant in its color, 

 the ground of the wings being bluish gray with black stripes, in general facies approach- 

 ing the Danaidse, while the under side of the hind wings is bright tan color, and the 

 body dull orange. It is over eight inches in expanse, and must be a very conspicuous 

 and striking object in its native forests. Nothing is as yet recorded as to its early 

 stages. P. hesperus is also another superb insect from the same region. It is jet, 

 velvety black, with pale yellow blotches, and with rather long but broad tails. P. 

 niveus is a species in which the black ground-color of the wings is relieved by a bright 

 sea-green macular band common to both, while its allies, P. epiphorbas and P.phor- 

 banta, have the same system of coloration differently arranged. 



But after all, as far as the Old World is concei-ned, the bulk of the species compos- 

 ing the genus under consideration are to be found in various parts of Asia; the Hima- 

 layas and the Malay Islands yielding the largest supply. One of the most striking 

 groups is that comprising the common Indian species, P. ganesa, parts, brama, and 

 Manor. These are, for the most part, golden green, the wings covered with metallic 

 irrorations, and variously marked with reddish or purplish spots on the margins. 

 They are magnificent insects, their colors being perfectly dazzling in the sunshine. 

 P. crino, P. hrishna, and P- arjuna, are among the rarities of this group, and vie 

 with their relatives in richness and beauty of color. Another striking section of the 

 genus is represented by P. ulysses, in which the wings are of the most dazzling 

 metallic blue, with broad black borders, recalling very much the coloration of the 

 gigantic Morphos, insects belonging to a veiy different family. The ulysses group is 



