178 BRITISH BUTTERFLIES. 



lxxix., fig. 2 (1782); Schoyen, " Troms. Mus. Arshefter," v., p. 13 (1882); Schilde, 

 "Ent. Nach.," x., pp. 368-9 (1884); South, " Ent.," xx., pp. 74 et seq., pi. ii., 

 fig. 2 (1887); Kane, "Ent.," xxvi., p. 243 in part (1893); Sparre-Schneider, 

 " Tromso Mus. Arshefter," xv., pp. 24-5 (1893), Newnh., "Ent. Bee," v., p. 12 

 (1894); Crass, " Ent. Kec," v., p. 100 (1894) ; Staud., " Iris," x., p. 323 (1897); 

 Sheldon, " Ent. Bee, xi., p. 13 (1899); James, " Ent. Eec," xvi., p. 298 (1904); 

 Turner, " Proc. Sth. Lond. Ent. Soc," 1907, p. 87 (1908).— j. Bright blue, 

 approaching Agriades thetis (bellargus) in colour. $ . Bright blue, with orange 

 spots (especially on forewings) almost obsolete (Tutt). 



This was described as an aberration of both sexes, and occurs as 

 such in many of its localities, but in the extreme west and north of 

 Europe the form becomes more or less racial, and attains perhaps its 

 greatest brilliancy in certain parts of Ireland and Scotland, especially 

 in the islands of the latter country. In the more northern parts of 

 Scandinavia, too, it approaches the Scotch and Irish forms in brilliancy 

 in both sexes. Our own series, when the form was described, was too 

 short to show its racial value, or the extent to which the brilliant blue 

 form could be modified where it occurred abundantly. It apparently 

 occurs also racially in some parts of Lapland. With a greater 

 knowledge, we widened our definition of the form, and described it 

 (Ent. Bee, xiv., p. 113) as " a large bright blue form of the $ , more 

 approaching that sex of A. thetis (bellargus) ; the fringes often distinctly 

 marked with black dashes at ends of nervures, occasionally extending 

 halfway through them. The 2 also larger and usually well-marked 

 with blue scales. On the underside, the spotting is frequently 

 restricted. The normal form in Western Ireland and in some parts 

 of Scotland, much rarer in England, where it only occurs as an 

 occasional aberration." Almost all authors who have been interested 

 in the variation of the Irish and Scotch examples of this species 

 have called attention to the frequent brilliancy of the blue tint in 

 both sexes and the extent to which the $ s are sometimes scaled with 

 bright blue, e.g., South (Ent., xx., pp. 74 et seq.), Kane (Ent., xxvi., 

 p. 243), etc. Salwey notes brilliant examples from Taynuilt, in 

 Argyllshire, June 3rd, 24th, 1880; James (Ent. Rec, i., p. 206), 

 that the $ s at Pitlochrie, Perth, were particularly large and brilliant in 

 August, 1890. Newnham records {Ent. Eec, v., p. 12) the capture of 

 $ s of very bright blue colour at Church Stretton ; James (Ent. Bee, 

 xvi., p. 298), the Witherslack ^s as large, one in particular as brilliant 

 as A. thetis, and the $s strongly marked; Crass notes the South 

 Shields forms as being of a very brilliant blue, and Turner notes a $ 

 of similar form from Effingham. But it is in the Scotch islands that 

 the form is still more marked ; McArthur states that, in Lewis, in 

 the Outer Hebrides, the $ s are of a very rich blue, often with distinct 

 black marginal spots on the uppersurface of the hindwings, whilst 

 Sheldon states (Ent. Bee, xi., p. 13) that, in July, 1898, he found 

 " on the island of Kerrera, off Oban, a race of P. i cants, the $ s of 

 which approached A. thetis ab. adonis in colour ; the $ s also of an 

 exceedingly bright blue tint, two with the entire uppersides, except the 

 red markings, of the most brilliant blue, whilst, in others, the red 

 markings on the uppersides are brighter than those of any P. icams 

 seen elsewhere. It would also appear to be racial in certain parts of 

 Scandinavia, some of our own Scandinavian examples are very brilliant, 

 and Rowland-Brown says that it was especially so at the Alten Fjord, in 

 July, 1906. Schilde gives (Ent. Nach., x., pp. 368-9) an interesting 



