126 MECILVNITIS. By B. Haenscli. 



a similar pattern as in the preceding forms, i. e. on tlie forewing dorijssus has in the bhick apical half an undulate 

 yellow oblique band and a subapical spot. The basal half of the forewing and the hindwing are red-brown; 

 the former with 2 black spots and black margins, the latter with narrow median band and distal margin. 

 nienaia. In Central America, from Costa Eica to Honduras. — Reakirt designates as utenaia a form from Honduras 

 vcritabilis. in which the oblique band of the hindwing is broken up into 2 spots. — veritabilis Btlr. is the form from 

 Colombia and Venezuela, with narrow wings. Here the club of the antenna is yellow-brown, in doryssus only 

 sahirata. the base is dark. The ground-colour of the wings is darker. This form flies also on Trinidad. — saturata 

 Godm. & Salv. is a similar, larger form from Mexico with very narrow yellow bands in the forewing, broader black 

 labotas. apex and large basal spots. — labotas Disf. is a ver,y light form from the volcano Chiriqui with yellow colour 

 at the end of the cell of the forewing and partly also at the base of the hindwing. Especially striking is the 

 $ of this local form, in which the black median band of the hindwing is only indicated at the apex, and is some- 

 times entirely absent. 



lycidice. M. lycidice Bates (34a). Smaller than doryssus. The forewing black with 3 yellow oblique bands, 



and also red-brown base and 2 red-brown spots at the inner angle. The hindwing has broader, black median 

 band and before it an indistinct yellow longitudinal band. In the $ the black band is proximally incomplete. 

 eurydice. Ill Central America, from Costa Rica to Honduras. — eurydice Hsch. is a similar form from Peru. The black 

 marking in the disc of the forewing is reduced. The yellow subapical spot is prolonged into a band. The 

 median band is narrower and more strongly dentate. The hindwing has a broad yellow longitudinal band and 

 in the $ also the black macular band is complete. Antenna yellow-brown with dark base, in lycidice dark 

 donjssides. with yellowish club. — doryssides Stgr. is very similar to the preceding, but has no yellow longitudinal band 

 omta. ill th® hindwing and the spots in the disc of the forewing are brownish yellow. — ovata Dist., from Costa Rica, 

 has broader and more roundish wings than lycidice. The macular bands of the forewing are narrower. The 

 black longitudinal band of the hindwing is only present in the apex and the yellow marking before it is entirely 

 isihmia. absent. — In isthmia Bates (34 b), from Panama and Costa Rica, the black colour occupies almost the whole 

 of the forewing. The yellow median band is broken up into 2 spots. The black median band of the hind- 

 wing is very broad; yellow colour is absent. In the 9 the median band is only indicated by a spot before 

 arcana, the apex. — In a form from Honduras, which I call arcana form. 7iov., the hindwing has a broad yellow longi- 

 californica. tudinal band and also in the $ a complete black band behind it. — californica Beak. In this form from Cali- 

 fornia the yellow spot on the discocellular of the forewing is said to be much narrower than in istlimia; behind 

 the end of the cell a yellow band runs from the costal to the hindmargin. 



mantineus. M. mantineus Heiv. (34 c) is a species verj^ different from the preceding forms, which is distinguished 



by the almost complete absence of red-brown, even on the hindwing, and by the absence of the yellow subapical 

 spot in the forewing. The forewing has only one red-brown spot at the inner angle and the hindwing a fine red- 

 brown line before the distal margin. In addition to the yellow median line the forewing has 2 yeUow spots 

 and a streak on the median vein. The hindwing has a yellow longitudinal band. This interesting species, 

 which recalls Heliconius nattereri, occurs onh- on the western slopes of the Andes in Ecuador, but is not rare. 



f ranis. M. franis 2?ea?i-. (33f) and the two following forms are nearly allied to j^oZywwii'a cawcaensis. The ground- 



colour of franis is reddish yellow-brown. The large yellow median spot in caucaensis is here separated by 



peruana, a black macular band into 2 parts, of wliich the proximal one is partly yellow-brown. — Iia the form peruana 

 Weym. the median band of the forewing is confluent with the distal margin ; hence there remains of the yellow- 

 brown ground-colour only a longitudinal band pointed towards the apex in the otherwise black-brown wing. 



vienapis. — In the form menapis Hew. (33 f) the black colour is still further increased, so that often only 2 small red- 

 brown spots at the base of each wing remain. Almost all transitions between the 3 forms are found. They 

 fh' in Colombia, especially in the Cauca Valley. 



cUsa. M. elisa Guer. has the forewing similar to that of isthmia; the two j^ellow spots at the end of the cell 



of the forewing (the remains of the oblique band) are here still further reduced and are placed near to the costal 

 resp. distal margin. On the other hand the two spots in the disc are enlarged. The zigzag band of the hind- 

 wing and the distal-marginal band are narrow. On the Upper Amazon and its tributaries in Ecuador, Peru 

 menecles. and Bolivia. — menecles Hew. is a form from the Amazon with small yellow spots in the forewing and a 

 small red-brown spot below the yellow one near the inner angle. The hindwing has only the beginning of the 

 ocoua. median band in the apical area. — In ocona Druce (= vilcanota Bob.) (34 b) the ground-colour in the ^ is 

 lighter yellow-brown. The yellow spots and the costal margin of the hindwing are semitransparent. Between 

 the two oblong j-ellow spots at the end of the cell and the distal margin is placed another oblong yellow spot, 

 so that here the usual oblique band is restored. The typical specimens come from the Upper Amazon, from 

 Peru. At the Upper Napo in Ecuador the form is similar to elisa, except that in the forewing the yellow double 

 spot of ocona is still present. 



In the following forms the two proximal j^ellow spots of the forewing are united into a broad oblique 

 band; the median band is only indicated by a few dots or is entirely absent. 



