204 BRITISH LEPIDOPTERA. 



development everywhere, but the facility with which it appears to 

 respond to its widely differing environments has led to the formation 

 of a great number of striking local races which differ greatly from 

 each other, and represent probably incipient species. The so-called 

 minor aberrational variations both in tint and markings are such 

 that a sort of polymorphism is in existence in many localities, few 

 examples being precisely similar. The ordinary red tinted aberration 

 occurring almost everywhere with the type is known as ab. rubescens, 

 but in almost every locality forms occur which may be described as 

 follows : 



With the lighter areas of the forewings of a pale oc\\xeox\s-g\ey=zeuphorbiae 

 Linn. 



With the lighter areas of the forewings of a pale ochreous-grey, but much 

 suffused with black scalesr=ab. suffusa, n. ab. 



With the lighter areas of the forewings tinged with reddish=ab. rubescens, 

 Garb. 



With the lighter areas of the forewings bright redrzzab. (et var.) grentzenbergi, 

 Staud. 



With the lighter areas of the forewings bright red, but much suffused with 

 black scales— ab. rufo?nelana, n. ab. 



Stichel ( Imekten Horse, 1903, p. 13) gives the following 

 summary of aberrations he has noticed (no. 1 coming from Austrian- 

 Silesia, nos. 2 — 7 from Bohemia) : 



1. Forewings and hindwings with uniform smoky ochre -yellow ground- 

 colour, hindwings showing only a quite faint reddish tone. 



2. The olive-coloured oblique band of forewings very narrow anteriorly, &c. 



3. The distal costal-spot of forewings only quite faintly expressed. 



4. This spot somewhat comma- shaped. 



5. Ground-colour very dark, especially the distal part of forewings, numerous 

 black scales observable between basal spot and oblique band on the inner margin. 

 Hindwings dusted with blackish. 



6. Forewings covered all over with blackish spots and strokes, especially 

 strongly on costa and in distal area. 



7. Black submarginal band of hindwings reduced to a narrow zigzag line. 



A large red-tinted Italian race is known as var. paralias, whilst 

 a smaller and intensely red, race from Capri is known as var. 

 grentzenbergi. A very dark aberrational form is known as ab. esidae, 

 whilst one, in which the red parts of normal euphorbiae become yellow, 

 is known as ab. lajitolii. Bartel considers (Pal. Gross-Schmett., ii., p. 82) 

 that this insect is one of the most variable of the Phryxid species, 

 and reiterates the opinion that it may be still in the process of 

 evolution, and that the various forms may not for centuries become 

 changed into species with fixed and constant characters. Treitschke 

 observes (Die Schmett., x., p. 131) that examples smaller than 

 Theretra porcellus and others far surpassing Phryxus livornica in 

 size are not at all rare. Oberthiir notes that the Brittany examples 

 are of small size and pale in colour, and that he has a specimen from 

 Brest in which the normal rose-colour of the hindwings is, on one 

 side, replaced by white. Bartel further adds that specimens from 

 Sicily are larger and much darker than those from central Europe ; 

 the forewings dusted with blackish, the red of the hindwings much 

 darker and the black band before the outermargin of the latter very 

 broad. Examples from Greece are also, he says, characterised 

 by their larger size, and sometimes reach a wing expanse of 

 87mm., thus surpassing those from all other parts of Europe. 

 Galvagni notes a very dark example from the Statzer-Thal. By 



