"21 



Comparative lengths of the costa of 3 examples of the 

 2 in the British Museum, 82 mms. ; 8g mms. ; and 

 100 mms. 



2 . Primaries with the central patch in the discoidal 

 cell more quadrate and more irregular in the form of the 

 excision at the distal end, than in the type. [Brit. Mus. 

 Coll.] 



2 . The white patch within the discoidal cell is about 

 half the size of that of the type, and finer in colour ; its 

 basal side lunate, the distal side dentate, with white atoms 

 projecting on either side. The light discal area of the 

 secondaries is not quite continuous. The first or upper 

 division contains two black spots of unequal shape, one 

 below the other ; the upper parts or points of the light 

 area (i.e., between four of the nervules) are somewhat 

 hastate in form ; the central black orbicular spots are 

 small. [British Museum Coll.] 



O. ARCHIDEUS. 



Gray, in the " Cat. Lep. Ins. B. Mus." speaking of his 

 female A rchideus, says: "This species agrees in many 

 particulars with the 2 of O. Pronomus, but the white of 

 the secondary wings reaches to the discocellular nervules 

 and a portion of the median nervures, and it also occupies 

 a small space within the discoidal cell, while the black 

 spots between the nervules are of a larger size." 



Wallace, referring to the same 2 form from Waigiou, 

 " Trans. Linn. Soc." Vol. XXV., p. 32, observes: " This 

 agrees with the last " (Poseidon). " The $ is a more 

 delicate green than any of the others, with less of that 

 colour on the median veins. On the underside there are 

 no golden spots. The whole surface has a golden tinge, 

 and the central portion of the lower wings is tinged with 

 amber brown." And Wallace goes on to say that the 

 2 2 of the above vary considerably, much more than 

 the «? $ do. That it was seldom that even in the same 

 locality two were found alike in pattern. But this may 

 generally be asserted of any of the species of the genus 

 Ornithoptera.] In some examples more than half of the 

 discoidal cell is occupied by a whitish patch, while in 

 others there are only a few small spots. [These will be 

 seen to be fragments of the general large patch broken 

 up by the pseudoneura till sometimes they become almost 

 obsolete.] " One specimen from Salwatty, almost ex- 

 actly agrees with that figured by Westwood (Cat. of 

 Oriental Entomology, PI. 14) as from Cape York. One 

 Waigiou specimen is the same as Archidetis, G. R. Gray, 

 figured by Boisduval (Voyage de'l Astrolabe t. 4, f. 12) ; 

 and another from New Guinea differs very little from 

 Euphorion, G. R. Gray (B. M. Cat. Lep., pis. 1, 2, fig. 

 3) from North Australia." From which Mr. Wallace draws 

 the inference, which a close study of a large number of 

 the different forms enables us also to accept, "that a 

 variable form (or species) is spread over an extensive 

 area, and kept variable by continual intercrossing of indi- 

 viduals, which would otherwise segregate into distinct 

 and sharply defined races." This variability, however, is 

 not a unique characteristic of the species under considera- 

 tion, for the 2 2 of 0. Urvilliana, and in a lesser degree, 

 of Aruana, are nearly as unstable in pattern — the 

 latter being so much more restricted in area notwith- 

 standing. 



O. EUPHORION. 



The 2 was alone described by Gray, as from N. West 

 Australia ; and has been generally supposed to be a 

 variety of O. Cassandra, which probably it is. Mr. 

 Walter W. Froggatt, the Government Entomologist for 

 New South Wales, in his letter to me, kindly mentions 

 Miskin's opinion that Euphorion, Gray, is a synonym of 

 0. Cassandra, "which is the common species from Mackay 

 to Cooktown, in Queensland." He informs me that he 

 has taken a good many on the Russell River, near Cairns, 

 North Queensland. At any rate a $ labelled Euphorion, 

 now before me, from the collection of Mr. Henry Grose- 

 Smith, is certainly so like the $ of Cassandra on the 

 lower-side, that if I were to only examine that surface I 

 should not hesitate to regard it as belonging to that 

 species, but the upper surface of the primaries has the 

 median vein and its branches well defined with green 

 atoms, a feature so characteristic of the different <? 

 varieties of Poseidon ; whereby we obtain a strong hint of 

 the close relationship between Poseidon and Cassandra. 



The following is Gray's diagnosis of Euphorion : — 

 " 2 . In size and general appearance it approaches very 

 near the 2 of 0. Pronomus ; but the band in the discoidal 

 cell of the primary wings contains a small spot which is 

 also the case with the white between the 4th and 5th 

 subcostal nervules ; and the one between the 5th sub- 

 costal and discoidal nervules is divided into two unequal 

 parts ; the spots near the median nervure, between the 

 1st, 2nd and 3rd median nervules are smaller ; the tear- 

 shaped spots on the secondary wings are of a less size, 

 and more distinctly formed, while the dark fuscous spot 

 in the middle of each is much larger than those of any 

 other species known ; the spot in each space between the 

 costal nervure and the 2nd subcostal nervure is ochraceous ; 

 as is also the space at the anal angle. The white spots 

 of the upper surface are all speckled with minute black 

 specks, and so is the ochraceous spot between the 1st 

 and 2nd subcostal nervures. The markings on the under 

 surface of all the wings are similar to those on the upper 

 side, both in shape and colour. Several specimens of 

 this butterfly were brought from the interior of the 

 northern portions of Australia by the late Allan Cunning- 

 ham, and they were all of the same sex." 



The type 2 of Euphorion is in the British Museum, and 

 was taken at Port Denison. It is not quite symmetrical 

 in pattern : the left wing has one wavy oval dot that is 

 not found on the right wing. The discocellular patch is 

 large, and somewhat irregular in outline towards the dis- 

 cocellular nervules — rather sinuate towards the base. A 

 second example from Queensland, has the cellular patch 

 transversely narrower, and dentate towards the discocel- 

 lular nervules : all the other light marks are small or 

 broken up, especially the 3rd long discal mark which is 

 almost X-shaped. A third example (ex-co\\. Druce, 

 ex'-Godman et Salvin) has the cell mark transversely, very 

 irregular, narrow and wavy ; and the discal area of the 

 posterior wings is sordid white and sordid yellow. A 3* 

 with one golden adnervular spot on the posterior wing, 

 and a second example with only one golden apical spot. 

 Hab. Queensland. Other 2 examples of this form are 

 very dark — the cell mark generally very oblique, narrow, 

 often more or less divided — sometimes with the upper 

 portions of the mark left, or the lower ones only very 

 small : the stray white marks of the wings generally small 

 or mere dots, except the 3 or 4 on the upper part of the 



Vol. I. 



