﻿H 



wing, 72 mms. ; greatest width of wing, 47 mms. 



S . Dark variety. Anterior wing as in the type form, 

 except that the colour is light rufous brown, darker shaded 

 at the outer margin beyond the adnervular rays ; the 

 rays are regularly arranged from the anal angle to the 

 subcostal vein, and are a very subdued white ; the veins 

 very prominently black. 



Posterior wings as in the type form, except that the 

 yellow areas are much restricted, and even then greatly 

 subdued by black atoms or scaling. 



The undersurface of the anterior wing warm rufous 

 brown, darker at the base and near or beyond the rays ; 

 adnervular rays as above, but very white and prominent, 

 subdued in the direction of the cell by dark atoms. 

 Posterior wing as above, except that the yellow areas are 

 slightly larger, and more vivid, but shaded by black 

 scaling. 



Head and thorax as in the type, except that the 

 pronotal collar is not yellow ; abdomen as in the type, but 

 with more subdorsal back, all the yellows also subdued by 

 scaling. 



Length of costa, 101 mms. ; outer margin, 70 mms. ; 

 greatest length of posterior wing, 72 mms. ; greatest width 

 of wing, 49 mms. 



Habitat : Sandakan, N. Borneo. 



In the museum of the Hon. Walter Rothschild, at 

 Tring. 



I have seen a considerable number of examples of this 

 species, and find that except in gradations of tone between 

 the type form and this dark variety, very little difference is 

 to be observed between them. By careful examination of 

 the different examples a slight tendency may be detected 

 towards a violet suffusion of the wings of the females ; but 

 it requires a good pure light in order that even this may 

 be faintly seen. 



This species is figured on plates 66a $ , 66b 2 , and 

 66c 2 , dark form. 



As I have shewn in another place, the beautiful opales- 

 cent tints of the $ P. Magellanus are sufficiently repeated 

 on the wings of the 2 ; in the case of P. Miranda only a 

 very slight tendency towards a repetition of the violet 

 sheen of the male can be discovered ; but one need not be 

 surprised if ultimately some highly coloured varieties of 

 the ? may be met with, or produced by careful breeding. 

 This anticipation is somewhat justified when we consider 

 how prevalent ultramarine and azure blues, and violet 

 tints are among the Rhopalocerous and Heterocerous 

 Lepidoptera, either as wing colours, patterns, or suffusions 

 on the darker or browner areas of the wings, especially 

 on their upper surfaces. 



This fact applies especially to the Lepidoptera of South 

 and Central America, and in a more limited degree to 



India and Borneo, the Philippines, the Malay, and 

 Moluccan Archipelagos, New Guinea, and its Papuan 

 Islands. So remarkably numerous are the examples on 

 the two American Continents, that one is almost tempted 

 to regard blue and violet as the prevailing colours of the 

 lepidopterous fauna. A very large proportion of the 

 Lycaenidse and the Theclas, especially of America, are 

 more or less blue — often in both sexes ; many of the 

 Erycinida? have violet reflections, especially in the Genera 

 Ancylurus and Erycina; the S <? of the majority of the 

 Morphos are of vivid blue and greenish blue tints — and 

 also a considerable number of the Morphinae of the east, 

 and the dark satyrida^ of nearly all countries ; indeed it 

 may be safely assumed that two of every three species of 

 the dark brown satyridae are more or less beautified by 

 either a sheen, or by violet or blue reflections on the wings 

 of one of the sexes, and the darker the insect the 

 more easy are their tints to be detected. A multitude 

 of the Nymphalidaa, such as Catagramma, Eunica, Cybdelis, 

 Callithea, Prepona, and Agrias (in the latter combined with 

 scarlet or crimson) ; and a large number of the oriental 

 Euploeas are shot with blue or violet ; many of the oriental 

 Papilios, (P. Ulysses and its allies for example, are grand 

 blue species) ; a very few of the Pierince are delicately 

 tinted ; but there are many Hesperiidse that are either 

 intensely coloured, or their black or brown surfaces give off 

 violet reflections when viewed in the proper positions. The 

 same may be observed among many of the Noctuidas of 

 India and South America, notably among the gigantic 

 Erebidse, and several of the oriental allied genera. Among 

 the Ornithoptera the tendency is for the black of many of 

 the species to exhibit at least a faint sheen of blue, often 

 shading into olive greens, as the specimens are changed 

 in position. 



But it is interesting to note that the green marks and 

 areas, especially of the anterior wings of the latter insects 

 always appear with coppery or crimson scarlet reflections, 

 when viewed obliquely against the light ; in some species 

 this colour reflection is so vivid as sometimes to give the 

 species the aspect of 0. Croesus $ , and to strongly suggest 

 that the whole of the species of my genus Ornithoptera 

 have originated from either a green or an orange ancestor. 

 It must also be noted that in most of the $ forms even 

 the golden greens on both surfaces appear to flow into 

 blue or violet when moved about into the proper light and 

 positions ; and that on the under surfaces of the posterior 

 wings the greenish-white areas often exhibit a blue blush. 



This brings me therefore to offer a suggestion that has 

 been on my mind for some years ; and though it may seem 

 to be a little out of place in this work, I am sure I may be 

 excused for bringing it forward, because of what I conceive 

 to be its scientific importance. 



A very large proportion of the lepidoptera are capable 

 of an almost infinite tendency to variation, as we well 

 know. Indeed there are only a few species that appear to 

 be quite stable — i.e., that appear to retain exactly the same 

 pattern and colours from generation to generation, in 

 whatever locality they may be found. These evidently 

 are dominant protected species, generally brilliant and con- 

 spicuous in colours and patterns, of strong or erratic flight, 

 capable of living almost in every part of the globe : such 

 species as Danais archippus, Pyrameis atalanta, P. Cardui, 

 &c, are examples (P. Cardui is generally shot with violet 

 in the examples taken in India and South Africa, pretty 

 much in the same way as are some of the species of Colias 



