64 BRITISH BUTTERFLIES. 



hindwings alone being black, the marginal dots well developed, that at the anal 

 angle weakly edged with yellowish-brown. It has a wing-expanse of 23mm. This 

 form I name ab. jodina ( Aigner-Abafi) . 



This is, like ab. bergstrasseri, an especially blue form of the $ , but 

 even more extreme than Bergstrasser's figure, which has a broad, 

 though broken, dark margin to the forewings, and is not so wholly 

 tinged with blue on the wings as Aigner has described ah. jodina, nor has 

 bergstrasseri the anal spot on the hindwings weakly edged with fulvous 

 or brown, as jodina is described as having. A similar, but (?) paler, 

 form, bred May 9th, 1848, was described by Zeller (Stett. Ent. Ztg., x., 

 p. 181), as having the whole upperside pale blue, becoming whitish on 

 the costa and hind margin of the forewings ; the abdomen, as in 

 amyntas $ , black, basally sharply contrasted ; the discoidal streak 

 very distinct. The hindwings, broadly blackened on the costa, have, on 

 the margin, the male markings in full sharpness ; the two red spots 

 large and more brightly coloured. The underside has nothing at all 

 abnormal. 



5. ab. tiresias, Rott., "Naturf.," vi., p. 23 (1775) ; Bergstr., " Norn.," iii., pp. 

 34-5 (1779). Puer, Schrank, " Faun. Boica," ii., pt, 1, p. 215, <? var. 1 (1801). 

 Amyntas, Ochs., "Die Schmett.," i., pt. 2, pp. 59-61(1808). — Papilio Plebejas 

 Ruralis tiresias. The c? is blue above, but the ? is dark brown, and has, at the 

 anal angle of the hindwings, two small orange-coloured spots (which, however, are 

 wanting in some examples) ; in some females the forewings are shot with blue at 

 the base. On the underside both sexes are quite whitish, and have only a few 

 scattered black dots without any white bordering. On each hindwing the two 

 orange-coloured spots appear as above, but have beneath two small green-shining 

 eyes as well. This insect appears beneath very similar to Papilio argiolus, Linn. 

 The chief mark of distinction, however, by which this insect is separated from all 

 other Argus species is a small tail, which it bears on each hindwing ; it has, how- 

 ever, only the thickness of a hair, and is so fine that one is not aware of it when 

 one does not look at it carefully. The insect appears in the month of July in 

 gardens. It is rather rare (Rottemburg). 



This form essentially differs from the type in the presence of the 

 metallic green eyes to the fulvous spots on the underside of the hind- 

 wings. The name tiresias was applied by Esper [Schmett. Eur., pi. xxxiv. 

 (supp. x.), figs. 1-2] to an entirely different form. Bergstrasser's 

 figures of tiresias, "Norn.," ii., p. 73, pi. xlv., figs. 1-4, and iii., p. 11, 

 pi. liv., figs. 3-4, also do not agree with the form originally described 

 under this name. Later, however, Bergstrasser recognised this, for 

 he writes (Norn., iii., pp. 34-5): " Viber writes of tiresias (see pi. 

 xlv., figs. 1-4 ; pi. liv., figs. 3-4) as follows: 'The $ is blue above, 

 but the $ dark brown, and has, on the hindwings, near the anal 

 angle, two orange-coloured spots (although these in some examples 

 fail). In some £ s the forewings are tinged somewhat at the base with 

 blue. The underside in both cases is quite whitish, and has only 

 some scattered black spots without white edging ; on the hindwings 

 are two orange-coloured spots as above, but containing two small 

 shining green eyes. It comes very near, on the underside, to Papilio 

 argiolus, the chief point of distinction, however, which separates this 

 from all other Argus species (except polysperchon) is a small slender 

 tail, not finer than a hair, etc." This quotation, ascribed to Yiber, is 

 certainly the original description of Von Rottemburg [supra). At any 

 rate, it shows that Bergstriisser, after describing other forms as tiresias, 

 discovered, too late to correct what he had done, what the characters of 

 the real tiresias were. Hiibner, in turn, figured as tiresias (Eur. 



