RUMICIA PHL^AS. 349 



in the neighbourhood of Yokohama, and the next day took black $ s 

 in Boshin, not more than 20 miles from Yokohama, whilst, by working 

 from Boshin, towards the north, through Kadzusa, I found the dark 

 form to be less abundant, until at Kanosan, they were entirely replaced 

 by the pale form." Kaye observes (Proc. Sth. Lond. Ent. Soc, 1900, 

 pp. 89-90) that " the spring broods oi phlaeas in Japan and Britain are 

 practically indistinguishable on the upperside, but, on the underside of 

 the forewings of the Japanese specimens, the white rings round the 

 spots are most pronounced, and the blotches on the hindmargins are 

 five or six in number, instead of three, as in the British examples ; on 

 the underside of the hindwings the ground colour is of a. silvery-brown, 

 and the black spots edged with white are more pronounced ; the colour 



of the red band, too, is much more vivid In the black 



summer form the red band is much widened and very brilliant." 

 Leech simply notes that, in Japan, " it is an extremely variable 

 species, both in size, colour, and markings ; during the summer 

 the typical form gives way entirely to var. eleus, a few intermediate 

 forms occur, the specimens darker in some localities than in others ; the 

 largest and darkest I found at Nagasaki, in July " (Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 

 1887, p. 414). Later, he records (Butts, of China, ii., p. 399) the insect as 

 common throughout Japan and Corea ; and adds that he " met with 

 the large bright form, var. cJdnensis, Feld., at Ningpo, and received the 

 same form from Kiukiang, together with the dark (eleus) form. The 

 species was not met with in western China." At Wei-hai-wei, 

 T. B. Fletcher observes that the insect is triple-brooded, and that " the 

 specimens vary much according to the time of year. Many examples 

 are large, and comparatively light coloured, and could hardly be 

 separated from large British specimens. Those taken in the spring 

 (April) are much more typical (i.e., the copper colour is paler) than the 

 generality of Asiatic specimens ; those taken in June are small and 

 much suffused with black, whilst those captured in September are 

 large and dark." He says that they are all referable to var. chinensis, 

 Feld., and the two later broods fall under var. eleus, Fb., and that he 

 has seen none so black as those he had taken in Japan (summer brood), 

 in which the copper is almost wholly concealed by black scales (Ent., 

 xxxiv., p. 156). He further adds that, "at Chifu, the spring specimens 

 are quite typical, but that summer and autumn examples are darker, 

 and fall under the head of var. eleus, although they are not nearly so 

 dark as some of the Japanese summer brood." The following are the 

 described Asiatic forms : 



a. var. turanica, Buhl, "Pal. Gross. -Schmett.," p. 747 (1896); Tutt, "Brit. 

 Butts.," p. 153 (1896). — An intermediate race between the typical form and var. 

 eleus ; the upperside only slightly darkened; the underside very pale. Tura (Buhl). 



From Ruhl's description, one would conclude that this was a local 

 race, and not an aberration, differing, not only in the tint of the 

 upper-surface, but also in the character of the underside. 



p. var. oxiana, Grum-Grsh., "Bom. Mem.," iv., p. 365 (1890) ; Buhl, " Pal. 

 Gross-Schmett.," p. 747 (1895); Tutt, "Brit. Butts.," p. 153 (1896). -In the 

 month of May, phlaeas is found everywhere in the Pamirs, but not beyond 4000ft. 

 In the month of August, the second generation is on the wing, this, however, 

 cannot be referred to eleus, because, although "supra nigricans," it is not "caudata." 

 Besides, as far as I recollect, it is a transition to the form of phlaeas from Bokhara, 

 which I describe as oxiana, Gr.-Gr., and which differs from the type (1) by the 

 very dark coloration of the wings of the <? s above ; (2) by the very pale coloration 



