111. 



and space. Nor is it offered to those lepidopterists whose knowledge is 

 based wholly on the study of the imagines, and who are ignorant of 

 the early stages of the species. Yet there is surely not a lepidopterist 

 who can name his Palsearctic butterflies, who will not grant that the 

 species we have included respectively in our genera Plebeius, Cyaniris, 

 and Agriades, are naturally more closely allied to one another than to 

 the species in the other groups, and form, per se, natural groups in 

 themselves, and, if natural groups, then genera — the genus being, as 

 we maintain, whilst our nomenclature is binomial (consisting of a 

 generic and specific name), the group name next above species. The 

 superficial arrangement previously adopted is well indicated in our 

 different treatment of two species with which we deal in this volume. 

 Hitherto, based evidently on the apparent similarity of the spotting 

 of the underside, minimus and semiargus have been kept next to each 

 other in our lists and catalogues, but, as we have shown, the former is, 

 in all its essential structural characters, a quite typical Everid, whilst 

 the latter is, in the same way, a quite typical Plebeiid, a view 

 abundantly proved by the character of the spotting alone, if the 

 oriental rather than the western forms of the species be considered. 



The labour involved in the study of the variation of these species 

 has been enormous. We have given the original description (or a 

 translation thereof) of every form that we have discovered in literature. 

 We have treated and judged each form separately on its merits, and 

 based our opinion on the original description or figure. The remark- 

 ably wide distribution of Everes cuyiades, a sedentary species, over 

 almost half the known habitable world, under varying conditions of 

 environment resulting in a number of slight local modifications, has 

 led to the study of the Everids of the world, and the incidental recog- 

 nition of new specific forms, as well as the disproving of the superficial 

 conclusions reached by certain authors concerning our southern and 

 south-eastern Asiatic species, some of whom have lumped the most 

 diverse species under the specific name argiades. These conclusions 

 are indicated in our book, the details would be out of place here. 



There has been no real trouble when one has come to grips 

 structurally with the various forms of the species treated. The 

 structural peculiarities exhibited by the local races, or "varieties " as 

 they are properly called, fall well within the specific limits of the 

 species. There has been no evidence that present environmental 

 conditions are more than maintaining the really superficial varietal 

 characters, or effecting any deeper- seated permanent biological changes 

 than are recognised in " varieties," i.e., local races. Dr. Chapman has 

 shown that the characters separating Everes argiades, Pallas, E. alcetas, 

 Hb., E. dipora, Moore, and Binghamia parrhasius, Fabr., are absolute. 

 Want of material leaves us less satisfied with the North American 

 forms, but our collaborator, Mr. G. T. Bethune-Baker, proposes, we 

 believe, to work these out, and has already commenced to accumulate 

 material. Similarly, our attention has so far been occupied with 

 disentangling the confusion that has been woven round the oriental 

 forms of Qyaniris semiargus, that we have paid less attention than we 

 ought to their relative value ; nor are we fully satisfied that we 

 have wholly cleared up the muddle that has arisen through the 

 misapplication of the name polonus, Zell., by Staudinger, who referred 

 the blue race of the allied Agriades coridon from the Taurus, to A. 

 thetis, as a variety under this name. But there cannot be the 



