38 A. WATSON 



with dark brown laterally; segments 3-8 dark brown with weak, dark blue iridescence, with 

 iridescent blue and greenish blue medial patch and lateral patch on each side of 4-8. Ventral 

 surface of segment 2 reddish orange medially, iridescent blue and greenish blue laterally; 

 3—7 reddish orange with posterolateral triangular marking of iridescent blue and greenish blue ; 

 segment 7 with posterior margin of dark brown; segment 8 dark brown with blue and greenish 

 blue patch laterally on each side. 



$. Differs from male chiefly on the under surface of the forewing which lacks the pale outer 

 marginal band, and on the under surface of the hind-wing where the cell is either entirely 

 dark brown or is reddish orange distally and dark brown proximally. One specimen from 

 Bolivia (BMNH) entirely lacks reddish orange markings on the wings. 



Forewing length: <$ 21 -5-25 -5 mm; $ 24 -5-27 -5 mm. 



$ genitalia. Saccus small ; valve with two apical processes ; juxta with two posterior processes, 

 the left process sparsely spinose, the right process densely spinose; vinculum with numerous 

 anteriorly directed spines in band extending from dorsal surface to ventral surface; uncus small, 

 simple, minutely scobinate, sulcate along mid-dorsal line; vesica of aedeagus with numerous 

 lobes, one of these scobinate. 



§ genitalia. Appendix bursae opening into ventral or right-hand sides of corpus bursae. 



Closely related to viridisignata and laeta. Distinguished from the former chiefly 

 by the narrower, reddish orange (not orange) arcuate band on the forewing and the 

 blue and greenish blue (not green and bluish green) markings on the head, thorax 

 and abdomen. Readily separable from laeta by the colour-pattern of the forewing 

 on which the orange coloration is restricted to a narrow, arcuate band and by the 

 restriction of the orange coloration to the cell of the hindwing of most specimens. 



There is little difference in genitalic characters of either sex between docis, laeta 

 and viridisignata, and more specimens of the latter two species are needed before 

 an assessment of possible distinguishing features can be made. 



The name ab. tenebrata was given by Seitz to specimens mentioned by Rothschild 

 (1910a : 42, pi. 7) in which the orange forewing band is absent or very narrow. 

 Walker's 'var. /3' (1856 : 1635) is a normal docis specimen; his basalis matches 

 ab. tenebrata Seitz. 



Known to occur in French Guiana, Guyana, Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia and Peru. 



anal fold 

 (under surface) 



Figs 7, 8. Himerarctia docis, (J, venation. 7, forewing; 8, hindwing. The anal fold 

 under the hindwing encloses a scent-organ (see PI. 13, figs 80-83). 



