POLYOMMATUS ICARUS. 155 



Courvoisier divides (Mitt. Sckw. Ent. Gesell., xi., p. 24) his "Formae 



privatae sensu strictiore" into two entirely different sections: (a) in 

 which the ocellated basal spots fail, (b) in which spots of the sub- 

 median series fail, and suggests that this group should " comprise all 

 those examples which have any number of spots in the submedian 

 series between the full normal number and the absolutely obsolete 

 form." As Courvoisier indicates in no way whatever a special name, but 

 simply discusses in a general way, the different forms included in his 

 " Formae privatae," it may be well to recognise his section b as subobsoleta. 

 Miss Fountaine notes (Ent., xxxvii., p. 157) the capture of a $ in 

 Amasia, in July, 1908, almost without spots on the underside. 

 Partial absence of the spots of the submedian row, judged from the 

 specimens in the British Museum coll., appears to be rather common 

 in $ s from Greece and Asia Minor. We find it rather common for 

 specimens to be without the 6th and 7th submedian spots of the fore- 

 wings, and the 2nd, 7th, and 8th in the hindwings, frequently in 

 conjunction with the loss of certain basal spots. Heverdin notes 

 (in litt.) a <$ taken at Jussy, May 23rd, 1884, with most of the sub- 

 median dots on forewings lacking, another J , Voirons, June 10th, 

 1909, with only five submedian dots on each fore- and hindwing. 

 Blachier mentions (in litt.) a $ taken at Bex, July 9th, 1885, almost 

 devoid of spots oil the underside, those present being 4 and 5 of the 

 submedian series on the right forewing, and the 5th on the left fore- 

 wing ; the discoidal lunules and marginal lunules present. Raynor 

 has a specimen in his collection, taken at Horsley, 18. vi. '97, in which 

 the underside of the right forewing has only one submedian spot, and 

 the right hindwing nothing but a single basal spot, whilst on the left 

 forewing there are 3 submedian and 2 small basal spots. At the other 

 extreme of loss, i.e., loss of but few ocellated spots, the same writer 

 notes that, in four specimens of the ab. candiope (ipliis) in his collection, 

 the double ocellated spot near the anal angle of the forewings is absent. 

 This is the case in several specimens of candiope and icarinus in our 

 own collection. A remarkable specimen, not quite obsoleta, is noted by 

 Dale (Hist. Brit. Butts., p. 72) as having been taken by his father in 

 Dorsetshire, August 5th, 1826, the underside of which is of a cream 

 colour, the usual ocellated spots absent, but replaced in the forewings 

 by two black streaks near the centre, and, on the hindwings, by a very 

 few minute black dots ; the fulvous band of spots the same as in the 

 type, but the marginal row of black spots wanting. It is now (1910) 

 in the Hope Museum, Oxford, and presents an excellent mixture of 

 subobsoleta and externa characters. 



6. ab. antico-obsoleta, Tutt, " Ent. Rec," xxii., p. 100 (1910). — The forewings 

 without basal and submarginal spots ; the spotting of the hindwings more or less 

 normal. 



This is an exceedingly rare form, of which we have seen very few 

 examples in British collections ; usually the spotting on the hindwings 

 tends also somewhat to obsolescence. 



t. ab. postico-obsoleta, Tutt, " Ent. Rec," xxii., p. 100 (1910). — Icarus ab., 

 South, "Proc. Sth. Lond. Ent. Soc," 1887, p. 62, pi. i., fig. 3 (1888); Turner, 

 op. cit., 1902, p. 108 (1903). Semipersica, Rebel, " Berge's Schmett.," 9th ed., p. 

 70 (1909). Postico-inocellata, Gillm., "Ent. Zeits. Gub.," iv., p. 4 (1910).— The 

 hindwings without the basal and submedian spots, the spotting of the forewings 

 more or less normal. 



This is a slight advance towards ab. obsoleta, from the ab. send- 



