MYCALESIS. 



57 



underside of the hind wing, which is constant ; but of the others 

 only the males can be separated with any certainty by the shape, 

 size, and colour of the secondary sex-marks on the underside of 

 the fore wing. In the long series of females that I have examined, 

 I have been unable to find a single constant character by which to 

 distinguish one form from the other. Mr. de Niceville considered 

 it probable that they interbred ; in which case it is quite possible 

 that there is only one form, of which the males possess varying 

 secondary sexual characters, that are, however, constant in certain 

 series. 



53. Mycalesis perseus, Fabr. (Papilio) Syst. Ent. 1775, p. 488 ; M. fy 

 de N. Butt. Lid. i. 1883, p. 120, pt. ; Moore (Calysisme), Lep. Lid. 

 i, 1890-92, p. 174, pi. 59, figs. 1, 1 a-1 d, & 2, 2 a-2e, 6 $ • 

 Mycalesis blasius, Fabr. Ent. Syst. Suppl. 1798, p. 426; Butler, 

 P. Z. S. 1867, p. 720, fig. 4 tf ; Moore (Calysisme), Lep. Ceyl. 

 i, 1880, p. 21, pi. 11, figs. 2, 2 a, S ; M. $ de N. Butt. Tnd. i, 

 1883, p. 115, pi. 16, fig. 55 <$ . 

 Mycalesis samba, Moore, Cat. Lep. Mus. E. L. C. i, 1857, p. 233, tf • 



Wet-season form. — S 2 • Upperside dark to somewhat pale 

 van dyke-brown. Tore wing with a white-centred, fulvous-ringed, 

 black ocellus in interspace 2, and rarely a very small but similar 

 ocellus in interspace 5. Hind wing uniform, occasionally two or 

 three postmedian obscure ocelli present. Fore and hind wings 



with subterminal and terminal 

 pale lines. Underside: the ground- 

 colour, subterminal and terminal 

 lines on the wings as on upper- 

 side, but crossed by a common 

 purplish - white narrow discal 

 fascia. Fore wing with from two 

 to four, hind wing normally with 



seven ocelli, similar to, but more 

 Fig. 17.- Arrangement of ocelli on j } d fi d fh ^ m 



underside of hmd wing in tl J . . ' , ,, 



A. Mycalesis mnieus, Linn. on the upperside ; on both wings 



B. „ perseus, Fabr. the line of ocelli bordered in- 



wardly and outwardly by sinuous 

 purplish-white lines. On the hind wing only the three posterior 

 ocelli in a straight line (fig. 17, B), the rest strongly curved out- 

 wards. In the $ the median or posterior ocellus on the upperside 

 of the fore wing is always larger than in the 3 . 



Dry-season form. — tf 2 • Upperside similar to that in the wet- 

 season form, the median ocellus generally smaller. Underside 

 brown, more or less suffused with purple and irrorated with darker 

 brown minute transverse strigse; the transverse discal band>obscure, 

 often merely indicated by black dots at the veins, occasionally 

 bordered outwardly by an ochraceous diffuse band. Ocelli obso- 

 lescent, but when present as mere minute dots their arrangement 

 on the hind wing is as in the wet-season form. Antennae, head, 

 thorax and abdomen brown ; antennas sometimes cinereous white 

 on the sides with the apex black. Male sex-marks in form 2, but 



