POLYOMMATUS ICAKUS. 131 



2d. — Like 2 (2a or 26), but with the wings scaled with lilac-blue to beyond the 



discoidal = ab. thersites-thestylis, n. ab. 

 Sd. — Like 3 (3a or 36), but with the wings scaled with lilac-blue to beyond the 



discoidal = ab. thtstylis, Kirby. 

 4d. — Like 4 (4a or 4/;), but with the wings scaled with lilac-blue to beyond the 



discoidal = ab. apicata-thestylu, n. ab. 

 le. — Like 1 (la or lb)*], but with all the wings scaled with lilac-blue, except the costa 



and outer margin = ab. fusca-theti*, n. ab. 

 2e. — Like 2 (2a or 2b), but with all the wings scaled with lilac-blue, except the costa 



and outer margin = ab. thersites-tlietis, n. ab. 

 Se. — Like 3 (3a or 3b), but with all the wings scaled with lilac-blue, except the costa 



and outer margin = ab. thetis, Esp. 

 4e. — Like 4 (4a or 4b), but with all the wings scaled with lilac-blue, except the costa 



and outer margin = ab. apicata-thetis, n. ab. 

 1/.— Like 1 (la or 1/')**, but with the wings wholly scaled with lilac-blue = ab. 



fusca-supracaerulea, n ab. 

 2/. — Like 2 (2a or 2b), but with the wings wholly scaled with lilac-blue = ab. 



thersites-supracaerulea, n. ab. 

 3/". — Like- 3 (3a or 36), but with the wings wholly scaled with lilac-blue = ab. 



supracaerulea, Obth. 

 4/. — Like 4 (4a or 46), but with the wings wholly scaled with lilac-blue = ab. 



apicata-supracaerulea , n. ab. 



The forms marked lc-4c, ld-4d, le-4.e, l/"-4/also occur in the bright blue, 

 as well as lilac-blue, form, and in the race described (posted) as var. clara, 

 so that one gets a similar series of quite bright esc Iter i -tinted, almost 

 bellargus-i'mted, blue forms. It is, however, quite impossible to deal 

 with the multitudinous polymorphic conditions that prevail in the ? s 

 of this species, and we should prefer, unless any form has been 

 separately named, to use these names for £ s shaded with any tint 

 of blue, so long as they were of the particular character indicated. 

 The fringes of all the wings in both sexes are more or less distinctly 

 divided into two zones, a dark inner area near the margin of the wing, 

 and a paler outer one ; the difference in tint being sometimes very slight 

 and others very marked, but usually much more defined in the J than 

 in the $> . Occasionally there is a tendency to the development of black 

 dashes at the ends of tbe nervures, in the basal half of the fringes, the 

 short bars rarely extending to the outer zone, and usually only in the 

 hindwings (as is the case normally in Polyommatus escheri) ( = ab. lacon, 

 Kirby), and, when present on the upperside, generally very much less 

 marked beneath. This feature has led to many wild statements by 

 collectors who have suggested that examples marked thus might be 

 hybrids between Polyommatus icarus and Aijriades thetis (see Proc Knt. 

 Soc. Lund., 1863, p. 177, ^nd many others). Of such forms, South notes 

 (Proc. St/i. Loud. Ent. Soc, 1888-9, p. 64) a $ from Bishop Auckland 

 with distinct patches of black in the fringes. Adkin also records (Proc. 

 Sth. Loud. Ent. Soc, 1890-1, p. 126), a J , taken at Snodland, Kent, 

 in the spring of 1891, with the black lines extending into the fringes. 

 Reverdin observes (in litt.) that, generally, the fringe of the J is 

 greyish in that part nearest the edge of the wing and white outside, 

 but that sometimes, especially on the hindwings, a small dark triangle 



•i The same forms occur as (1) fusca-thetis-alboluyvulata, thersites-thetis-albo- 

 lunulata, etc., (2)fusca-thetis-caeruleolumdara, thersites-thetis-caerideolunulata, etc., 

 (3) fusca-thetis-alhocuneata, thersites-thetis-albocuneata, etc., (4) fusca-thetis- 

 caerideocuneara, etc. 



** The same forms occur as fusca-supracaerulea-albolunulata, thersites-supra- 

 caerulea-albolumdata, etc., (2) fusca-sitpracaerulea-caerulcolunulata, thersites- 

 supracaerulea-caeruleolunulata, etc., (3) fusca-supraraerulea-albocuneata, thersites- 

 supracaeridea-albocuneat a, etc., (4)Jascu-suprucaeridea-caeruleocimeata, etc. 



