Publ. 10. VI. 1913. ARGYNNIS. By Dr. Tx. Leymann. 425 
mottled with pale and dark, the outer half suffused with purple; two rows of median spots margined with 
dark ferruginous, a median band of small ocelli ringed with dark brown, and a series of submarginal spots 
of the same colour. At the costa near the base a large rhombic spot of pale violet. Expanse: 1,7—1,8’. 
The egg and the young larva resemble exactly those of A. myrina, but when full grown, the larva differs from 
the latter in having the spines on the second segment of the same length as the others. According to 
Meap it rather resembles that of A. cybele, which would be an other proof of the inadvisability of separating 
Brenthis as a genus of its own. bellona is very common throughout the United states of North America, 
from the Alleghanies in Virginia, where it only occurs at higher altitudes, to Canada, and westward to the 
foot of the Rocky Mountains. It flies together with A. myrina, being easily distinguished from it by the ab- 
sence of the bright silvery spots, on the under surface adorning that species. 
A. epithore Bsd. (861) is a close ally of the preceding species, which it replaces in the western 
States, from Colorado to the Pacific Coast, being possibly even’ a variety of the same, as STRECKER a. 0. 
have assumed. The forewings are much less excavated below the apex; the ground-colour paler fulvous, the 
black markings slighter, but the basal half of the hindwings much more heavily obscured with fuscous. 
The under surface resembles that of bellona, but is less brownish purple, mottled more distinctly with yellow, 
with the markings of the hindwings almost obsolete in the distal half. — var. kriemhild Streck. refers to 
a rather paler form from tke arid, waterless mountains’ of, Utah and Arizona. 
A. alberta Hdw. (87f) is among all the other species of Argynnis easily recognized by the faded, 
dull reddish ground-colour; the markings resemble those of helena, but are much paler and partially almost 
obsolete, appearing as obscure, dark shadowy spots and streaks. , On both wings the median bands dissolve 
into single short striae, barely visible on the hindwings. The under surface even more monotonous than the 
upper surface, pale red-brown, the hindwings rather paler in the outer half, slightly clouded with yellowish in 
the discal area, with yellowish-white terminal spots. The 2 on the whole darker than the 3, varying from 
slaty-grey to dark brown, both wings with a peculiar greasy lustre. Expanse: 1,6—1,9’’. Of the early stages 
only the egg and the young larva are known; the former pale yellow, conoidal, almost as high as broad, 
marked by about 40 vertical ribs; it takes 10 days to hatch the larva, which, like most American Argynnis, 
hibernates when quite young. alberta is not scarce on the higher mountains around Laggan in the Canadian 
province of Alberta, close to the boundary of British Columbia; it flies together with the much less common 
A. astarte, Col. nastes, Chrys. snowi, on the steep upper slopes of the mountains, the 99 generally higher than 
the gg. Whereas the 29 fly about slowly, alighting frequently on flowers such as Dandelion etc., the g¢ 
spend most of their time racing restlessly up and down the slopes, flying so close to the ground that they 
appear to glide on the surface (EDWARDS). 
A. astarte Dbd. and Hew. (= victoria Hdw. 1891) (86 f). Upper surface bright fulvous ; forewings slightly 
obscured at base, hindwings broadly shaded with fuscous, the dark area covering nearly half the wing. The 
black markings on both wings very heavy; on the hindwing the terminal border rather broader than on the 
forewing. slightly laved with paler between the nervules. The submarginal rows of spots small, rather 
obscure, the roundish discal spots as well as the dentate median band heavier on the forewings than on 
the hindwings. Underside of forewings pale fulvous, the inner part of the cell shaded with brownish, the 
subcostal spaces enclosing some small spots of faint orange-red. Underneath the markings of the upper sur- 
face are repeated, but reduced. The under surface of the hindwings a lovely orange-red, gradually getting 
paler toward the termen. Two blackish terminal lines, preceded by a series of yellowish-white spots separated 
by the nervules; in the outer portion of the disc a row of small roundish black dots indistinctly edged 
with white proximally. But the best characteristic is a broad band composed of irregular, whitish-yellow 
patches faintly margined with black, traversing the middle of the hindwing, strongly contrasting with the dark 
orange-red ground. 2 very much as 3, but with the markings. even heavier, rather more diffuse outwardly. 
astarte approaches in size the true Argynnis, but, judging from the nature of its markings, belongs to 
the Brenthis group; expanse: 3 2,0’, 9 2,2”. The type of which Dovusiepay figured the less characte- 
ristic upperside as that of a new species of Melitaea, without, however, giving any description, is in the 
British Museum; although captured some time ago by Lord DrErsy’s~ collectors, probably in the moun- 
tainous part of British Columbia, it was later on mentioned in Kirpy’s Catalogue as coming from Ja- 
maica, for which reason it was not mentioned in STRECKER’s Catalogue. It was not until, some time afterwards, 
that T. E. Bean rediscovered it near Laggan (Alberta), close to the British Columbian border, in Lat. 51’, 
in the valley of the Bow River. It is always found singly on the highest mountain peaks, not below an 
altitude of 8600 ft., away above the timber-line, at the end of July and during the first days of August. 
It is exceedingly shy and difficult to catch; its flight, especially that of the gd, very swift; rushing and 
racing about on the desolate rocky slopes, with the wings in constant whirling motion, alighting but rarely 
v 54 
epithore. 
kriemhild. 
alberta. 
astarte. 
