INSECTS OF SAMOA. 



seen in every month from January to July, but not on visits paid to the same 

 locality in August, September, October and December ; it is not at all impro- 

 bable, however, that H. errabunda occurs in these latter months also, for our 

 visits were not very frequent and the species is never common. A specimen 

 was captured bearing a very large symmetrical injury, involving both fore and 

 hindwings, and obviously inflicted while the butterfly was at rest ; about a 

 third of the total wing-area is missing. The injury was presumably the work 

 of a lizard. 



^99 s - — A female was observed on 22.vi.24 ovipositing on the underside 

 of a leaf of Cuclrania sp. near javanensis Tree, a rather common epiphyte 

 belonging to the Urticaceae, and known locally as " Samoan strawberry." 

 The eggs were green, with fourteen longitudinal ridges, and the batch consisted 

 of five ; as the plant is not large enough to support many larvae this is pro- 

 bably about the normal number of eggs in a batch. Unfortunately it was not 

 possible to measure these eggs, but I subsequently obtained oviducal eggs, 

 of which the diameter was 0*96 mm. and the height 1*02 mm. The first larva 

 hatched eight days later. 



The newly-hatched larva is grey with a black head. When full-grown 

 (PI. IV, fig. 12) it is deep velvety black, with numerous minute white spots ; 

 the legs and prolegs are black, the spiracles white. There is a pair of very 

 large and stout black spines on the head, and a short pair on the prothorax ; 

 the spines on all the other segments are stout and orange-coloured ; there 

 are seven spines on each segment behind the prothorax except the penultimate 

 and last segments, which bear only three and two respectively. The larvae 

 were about 60 mm. long when full-fed. In captivity the larval stage lasted 

 thirty-eight days, but may have been prolonged by the fact that the food- 

 supply was very limited ; the two males bred were very small. 



Pupa. — Very like that of H. bolina but larger, with tubercles much less 

 prominent ; dark brown with lighter brown mottling, especially on the dorsal 

 surface. Two males each remained in the pupa eight days. 



This form will probably prove to be a race of H. pithoeka Kirsch., which 

 occurs in several races in Papua and the Solomons. As, however, it differs 

 markedly from any known race of H. pithoeka, and is so widely separated from 

 it geographically, I prefer to keep it separate provisionally. The larva differs 

 from that of //. pithoeka in the absence of the two broad ochre-yellow lateral 

 lines mentioned by Fruhstorfer (1912, p. 544). 



