MIMETIC ASSOCIATIONS 



47 



MIMACRAEA POULTONI. 



Neave, Novit. Zool., xi, p. 337, pi. I, f. 18 (1904). 

 — Trans. Ent. Soc, p. 2ig (1906). 



Plate III, Fig. 22. 



I have examined five examples of this interesting Lycaenid, and, judging by even so 

 small a series, it appears to be a rather variable insect. Two of the specimens are like the 

 figure, on Plate III, though one, a female, has the sub-apical bar a little deeper in colour. 

 The species presents a beautiful mimetic resemblance to the model A . sotikensis, with which 

 insect the original examples were taken at Nyangori. A third example, a female, has the 

 inner-marginal patch of a paler orange, whilst the discal band in the hind-wings is the same 

 colour as the sub-apical bar in the fore-wing, though suffused round the edges and along 

 the nervules with a deeper orange tint. A fourth specimen, only lately received from Entebbe, 

 has the ground-colour and the orange of the fore- wings darker and richer, and the sub-apical 

 bar is also orange, whilst the discal band in the hind-wing is pale yellow, suffused with orange 

 only close to the costa. Finally, a specimen in my own collection, from the same neighbour- 

 hood, has all the light markings of a pale yellow colour, only the inner-marginal patch in 

 the fore-wings and the costal portion of the hind-wing being very slightly deeper in tint than 

 the remainder. In all these examples the underside shows little or no variation. It will 

 be seen that the third specimen resembles the variety of sotikensis already mentioned. The 

 example with all the markings pale yellow is with difficulty distinguished from Acraea 

 viviana, Stand., whilst if it be remembered that these butterflies come to rest with the 

 fore- wings dropped back within the secondaries, thus showing only the underside of the latter, 

 then the resemblance to A . viviana must be better even than that to A . sotikensis. A . viviana 

 is found at Entebbe, whence I received the pale form of the Lycaenid. I have also seen an 

 example of M. poultoni in the Tring Museum, which was taken in Cameroon, showing 

 that the insect has a very wide range. This western specimen has the markings nearly all 

 pale yellow, and it is difficult to distinguish it by its pattern alone from A. viviana, vslt. 

 karschi, Auriv., which is found in the same district. 



THE FORMS OF ACRAEA LYCOA AND 

 ACRAEA JOHNSTONI. 



Type, johnstoni johnstoni. Godm., Proc. Zool. Soc, 



p. 537 (1885). 

 = Planema telekiana. Rogenhofer, Ann. 



D. K.K. Naturhist. Hofmus. Wien, p. 459, 



pi. 15, f. 4 (1891). 

 = A craea proteina f . semifulvescens . Ober thiir , 



Etud. d'Ent., xvii, p. 26, pi. 2, f. 21 (1893). 

 johnstoni, var. confusa. Rogenhofer, 1. c, p. 459, 



pi. 15, f. 5 (1891). 

 = johnstoni 5. Butler, Proc. Zool. Soc, 



p. 91 (1888). 

 = proteina. Oberth., Etud. d'Ent,, xvii, 



p. 25, pi. 2, f, 14 (1893). 



ACRAEA LYCOA. 



Type, lycoa lycoa. Godt., Enc. Meth., ix, p. 239 (1819). 

 lycoa, var. fallax. Rogenhofer {Planema), 

 Ann. D. K. K, Naturhist. Hofmus. Wien, 

 vi, p. 459, pi. 15, f. 6 (1891). 



Plate III, Fig. 24, 25, 26, 



ACRAEA JOHNSTONI, 



= proteinaf. flavescens. Oberth., 1. c, p. 26, 



pi. I, f. 4 (1893). 

 = proteina f.semialbescens. Oberth.,l.c.,pl.3, 

 f. 29 (1893). 

 johnstoni, var. fulvescens = proteina f. fulvescens. 



Oberth., 1. c, p. 26, pi. 2, f. 21 {1893). 

 johnstoni, var. toruna. Grose-Smith, Rhop. 

 Exot., pt. Ivii, Acraea, pi. 8, f. i (1901). 

 = lycoa, 5 var. Butler, Proc. Zool. Soc, 

 p. 731 (1895) = lycoa ab. butleri. Auriv., 

 Rhop. Aeth., p. 115 (1898). 



= kilimandjara. Oberthiir, Etud. d'Ent., 

 xvii, p. 26, pi. 2, f. 17 (1893). 

 lycoa aequalis. Roth, and Jord. 



R. and J., Novit. Zool., xii, p. 184 (1905). 

 Plate VIII, Fig. 13. 



