THE YOUtfG NATURALIST. 



297 



cabinets. The variety of the underside, 

 which is found in nearly all the "blues," 

 where the spots are elongated or run to- 

 gether into streaks, is not uncommon in this 

 species, Two are figured in Newman's book 

 from specimens in Mr. Bond's collection 

 and one in my collection is figured in Mr. 

 Mosley's illustrations. Icarinus, Scrib. has 

 no spots on the underside, between the 

 central spot and the base. I have taken this 

 form several times, and believe it would be 

 found not uncommon if it were looked for. 

 The var. Persica, Bienert, which occurs in 

 Persia, as its name implies, is described in 

 Staudinger's catalogue as " Subt. punctis 

 nullis." Several other named varieties are 

 mentioned by Kirby, but I know none of 

 them. They are Iphis, Meig. ; Alsus, var. 

 Pusillus, Gerh.; Labienus, Thesiylis, and Laeon, 

 Jerm. ; and Eros and Icarius, Steph ; the 

 latter five being British. 



Note. This species was called Icarus by 

 Lewin and Haworth, the name dating from 

 1775. The name Alexis, W.V., was first 

 used in 1776, but Scopoli used this name in 

 1763 for his var. 2. Whether this should 

 give it precedence I am not prepared to say, 

 but the most recent writers are abandoning 

 it for Icarus. 



ADONIS, W.V., PI. 22, Fig. 2. 



"Adonis, W.V., Ado'nis, a young shepherd 

 beloved by Venus. Cf. Virg. iEn. x. 18." 

 — A.L. 



Imago. — PI. 22, Fig. 2. Male, clear 

 bright blue, with a narrow black line at the 

 hind margin, and fine white fringe through 

 which the wing rays from black lines. 

 Females, brownish black often suffused with 

 blue ; a row of eyed spots with orange 

 lenules at the hind margin of the hind wing, 

 and a row of orange spots more or less 

 distinct round the hind margin of the fore 

 wing. Underside similar to Corydon, but the 

 black spots are seldom so large. 



Larva. — Deep green. The eight middle 

 segments have raised ribs or humps on each 

 side, making the dorsal area appear de- 

 pressed. An oblique yellow streak on each 

 of these raised portions. The projecting 

 sides are also yellow, spiracles black, head 

 dark brown. For the resemblance and 

 difference between this larva and that of 

 Corydon see the description of the larva of 

 Corydon. 



Pupa. — I have never seen the pupa of 

 Adonis, nor do I know of a description of it. 

 Owen Wilson states that it pupates "just 

 below the surface of the earth. 



Food Plants. — Stainton on the 

 authority of Och. says "various papilio- 

 naceous plants." Newman names no food. 

 Owen Wilson gives "Tufted horse-shoe 

 vetch." This I suppose is Hippocrepis comosa, 

 which is sufficiently confined to the south 

 of England to explain the non-appearance 

 of the species in the north. 



Times of Appearance, — The insect 



appears on the wing in May or the begin- 

 of June. The egg is doubtless laid that 

 month, and the larva should be found in 

 June and July. In August the second brood 

 appears, and the larvae pass the winter in 

 that state, feeding up early in the year. 



Habitat. — In this country Adonis is 

 only found in the southern counties, chiefly 

 on calcareous soils. It occurs in the Central 

 and Southern portions of Europe, and in 

 Asia Minor. 



Variation. — Adonis is an insect that 

 departs from the type in several ways. I 

 have not heard of any truly hermaphrodite 

 specimens ; but a female taken at Folkestone, 

 in 1876, is in the cabinet of Mr. C. A. Briggs, 

 that has some dashes of the male colour on 

 the tip of one wing. Females do not seem 

 to be rare that are much suffused with blue, 

 and when wholly so, they are called Ceronus, 

 Esp. Others occur in which the spots run 



