350 



MORPHO. By H. Feuhstoefer. 



Hhn. (66 b), probably came from' the state of Rio de Janeii-o, although according to von Bonninghatjsen 

 the species does not occur in the to'mi of Rio itself, but only in the north-west of the provmce of this name, 

 and is probably distributed as far as Sta. Catharma. The $ was fu'st figured by Statjdingee; it differs from our 

 figure {mellinia, 66 b) m the darker colouring, the smaller transceUular patches of the forewiiig and the far 



mellinia. larger submarginal spots of the hind-ning. — mellinia Frulist. differs from 5$ from Rio de Janeu'o m the 

 more extended black border of both wmgs and the much more broadly black thickening of the veins of the 

 forewing. In addition on the fore\Aing in the broader black spot at the apex of the cell and the larger yellow 

 cii-cumceUular patches. Lower median at its base, submedian in the middle, bordered mth broad patches 

 of black scales. The hindwing darker red-bro\\'n. Distal border more broadly black with the yello\\'ish roimded 



bisanthe. patches considerably smaller. — bisanthe Fruhst. (66 b), mth the type from Sta. Catharma, describes the 

 southern form of the collective species, in the $ recognizable at once by the almost uniformly large yellowish 

 submargmal spots, which mostly extend from the anal angle to the apex, whilst in aega and mellinia they 

 do not reach beyond the median part of the fore wmg. The cixcumcellular spots are larger and lighter. The black 

 spot before the apex is narro^^'er, more diffuse, and only extends to the middle of the anterior wall of the cell. 

 The ground-colour of the yellow $$ much paler, on the hmdmng without bro^or tinge ; the submargmal patches 

 of the forewing more miiform, forming a more complete row. The $$ are among the most variable Morphids 

 and three principal forms may be distinguished, including the normal (most commonly occurring), predominantly 

 broAAm-j'ellow $, analogous to that of mellinia, and probably the ancestral form, still recalling the Brassolids, 

 mixta, thus phyletically the oldest. Besides this we have mixta Fruhst., with partial blue reflections on the forewing 

 pseudo- (66 b), and finally pseudocypris Fruhst. (66 c), in which the yellow-brown gives place to a dark or light blue, 

 cypris. which overspreads the whole upper surface. Whilst the ^^ before me from Rio de Janeiro, Parana and Blumenau 

 show inter s e no differences worth mentioning, the o (J of hisanthe from Rio Grande do Sul can be at once 

 separated from their more northern representatives hy the predominantly white-grey instead of purple-brown 

 under surface, which in addition is traversed by more sharply defined, i. e. more strongly black-bordered and 

 consequently more distinct, grey-white or pale yellow longitudinal bands. Also the bisanthe $$ are paler yellow 

 beneath and in the form pseudocypris with more prominent light areas than in mellinia. Thus in the north 

 Espiritu Santo with an almost uniform hot, damp climate all the year round, which produces a continuous, 

 vast forest area covering the still almost unknowm interior of the province, has a deep-coloured, one might 

 say rainy-season form. Rio Grande do Sul, on the contrary, with pronounced separation of the seasons and 

 great extremes in temperature, produces, on account of the dry prairies extending from Argentina, which restrict 

 the primeval forest to a relatively narrow tract in the eastern slopes of the coast-mountains, a pale race with 

 all the characteristics of a product of a dry region. IMabiijde says that bisanthe occurs for 10 — 15 days in the 

 spring and 20 — 40 days in the auturmi on forest-paths. Of the rare $$ about 10 — 15 are found to 1000 cJc?. 

 BuRMEiSTEE kucw an aega race mth blue $$ from the Missiones in the state of Argentina, discovered there 

 by Caelos Beeg. 



M. rhetenor, already named by Ceajiee the "blue elongate Atlas butterfty", has the apex of the fore- 

 mng more produced than any other Morphid species; a characteristic, however, that partially disappears in 

 the $, which more resembles that of cypris. The cj is one of the most brilliantly glossy species and has 

 only a quite inconsiderable black apical spot and a white costal patch on the fore^^ang. The under surface 

 is noteworthy for the contrast between the black basal area and a brown distal region, which are separated 

 by a median band of a more or less pure white and of varying extent according to the locality. Both -\vings 

 rhetenor. beneath shoA\' bro^^^l rounded eye-spots entirely without ^^■hite pupils. — rhetenor Cr. (68 b) inhabits Guiana 

 and its (J<J are much smaller than those from other locah ties. The under sm-f ace of the SS must at the same 

 time be described as the dullest in colour. The eye-spots of the hindAving remain light red-brown and the 

 median area is dull grey. The verj- rare $, which we figure from an example in coU. Fetjhstoefee, exceeds 

 the (J in expanse and is striking chiefly on account of the contrast of the deep velvety brown cell in the fore- 

 eusebes. wing and of the submarginal area against the ochreous median area. — eusebes Fruhst. inhabits the Amazon 

 region, where Michaeus observed it at Obidos in August and September, and Dr. Hahkel at Iquitos and 

 Jurimaguas. According to Dr. Hahsel (Iris 1890, p. 235) eusebes always flies at a great height and energeti- 

 cally, mountmg from 3 to 6 m. -v^ith an undiilating fhght, and can only occasionally be attracted to fly down 

 on to wmgs of Morpho menelaus laid on the ground. The $ settles on wet places on the baiiks of rivers (a 

 habit which I also observed in M. anaxihia in Sta. Catharina). When disturbed they only fly away slowly, 

 in contrast to the So- The SS emit a smell of sulphur (Hahxel 1. c, p. 308). <S considerably larger than 

 rheteuQr rhetenc/r Cr. from Surinam, with, the black at the apex of the forewing somewhat more extended and 

 "iiith the first begianmgs of the j'ellow spotting which distmguishes cacica Stgr. Under surface brighter, fresher- 

 colom'ed, with more dehcate grey-white median area and more distmct, darker brown, incomplete ocelli on the 

 hindwhig. A comparison of the figvu'e of our rheten&r 9 with that of eusd)es given by Statjdingee, 

 Exot. Schmetterlmge pi. 70, shows the following differences : ground-colom' of the eusebes $ light, almost canary- 

 yellow, without any bro\\ii admixtvrre. TransceUular spot nearly twice as broad, all the distal patches 

 likewise more intensive and finer veUow, isolated, and divided into two instead of three rows as in rhetenor. 



