270 
SOUTH-AFRICAN BUTTEEFLIES. 
Tliis is an extensive group of closely allied forms, about ninety species 
having been described. They are butterflies of rather small or middle 
size, mostly characterised by very conspicuous sharply-defined white or 
ochreous bands and spots on a black or fuscous ground. The metro- 
polis of the genus is the Indo-Malayan Sub-Kegion, but it extends through 
the Austro-Malayan Islands to Australia, and in opposite directions to 
China, Japan, and Eastern Siberia, over the Ethiopian Eegion, and 
even to Eastern Europe, — two species (Aceris, Lep., and Lticilla, W. V.) 
occurring not uncommonly in many parts of South Kussia, Turkey, 
Austria, &c. 
Of the fifteen Ethiopian species known, four are apparently limited 
to Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands, and three to Angola; five 
others seem only to have occurred in Western Africa north of the 
Equator ; while of the three remaining, all of which inhabit Southern 
Africa, JV. Agatha (Cram.) appears to range throughout the Continent, 
H. Marpessa^ Hopff., extends through South-Tropical Africa and on the 
eastern side northward to Abyssinia, and N. Goochii, Trim., has only 
been found in Natal. Of these three South- African forms, only Mar- 
pessa appears to penetrate the Cape Colony, a specimen having been 
sent to me from Port Alfred at the mouth of the Kowie Eiver. Agatha 
is considerably the largest, and is very striking from the size of the 
pure- white bands. Goochii is the smallest, and differs from both the 
others in possessing a longitudinal white bar in the discoidal cell of the 
fore- wings. 
The butterflies of this genus frequent sheltered wooded spots. 
Agatha and Marpcssa, which I observed in Natal, and Frohenia, Fab., 
a yellow-banded species which I took in Mauritius, all have a weak 
but rather floating flight ; they haunt a particular tree or shrub, and are 
fond of settling on the leaves, often keeping their wings expanded when 
at rest. 
87. (1.) Neptis Agatha, Cramer. 
rapilio Melicerfa, Fab. [tiec Drurj], Syst. Eut., p. 508, n. 274 (1775). 4 
Papilio Agadta, Cram., Pap. Exot., iv. t. cccxxvii. If. a, b (1782). 
Nymphalis Melicerta, Godt., Eiic. ifetli., ix. p. 432, n. 260 (1819). 
I\'ep)tis Melicerta, Trim., Khop. Afr. Aust,, i. p. 146, n. 87 (1862). 
Neptis Agatha, Hopff., Peters' Eeise nach Mossamb., Ins., p. 383 (1862). 
Uxp. al.y 2 in. — 2 in. 7 lin. 
Broiimish-hlach, with a reddish gloss, tuith p)urc-^chite transverse 
hands. Fore-iuing : a slightly curved, rather broad white band, com- 
posed of six contiguous spots, beyond middle, extending from costa to 
first median nervule not far from hind-margin ; on inner margin, a 
little before the end of band, a semicircular white spot, crossed by sub- 
median nervure ; along hind-margin three rows of paler markings, 
thin, lunular, partly white, the two first spots of the innermost row 
