128 
SOUTH-AFRICAN BUTTERFLIES. 
broader, usually more or less dentate, extending to join apical blackish ; 
instead of two crimson spots, an orange-ochreoits hroad hand^ formed of 
from three to five large spots, between second subcostal and submedian. 
Under side. — Quite like that of $. 
Var. a. $ and 
^ Blue much duller, inclining to violaceous ; black border nar- 
rower, especially at posterior angle of fore-wing, and throughout in 
hind- wing. Hind-wing : upper crimson-red spot obsolete, and the 
others small and dull. 
$ Blue almost obsolete, only indicated by bluish-grey scaling over 
a strong dull-fuscous suffusion from base. 
Under side in both sexes normal. 
Hah. — Delagoa Bay {Mrs. Monteiro). In the Collection of Mr. H. 
Grose Smith. 
Larva. — Dull-green, rather paler laterally; a pale-reddish dorsal 
median line. About 7 lines in length and 2 lines in width, across 
middle of back. Anterior extremity blunt and rounded ; posterior 
extremity tapering and terminating bifidly ; central portion very thick 
and convex superiorly. 
(Described from a drawing by Captain H. C. Harford of a specimen 
found near D'Urban, Natal, on 20th September 1868. The figures — 
No. 8 on Plate 1. — are from drawings of King William's Town speci- 
mens by Mr. J. P. Mansel Weale.) 
Pupa. — Bright-green, paler on under side. Along median line of 
back a row of five sub-rhomboidal, creamy, ferruginous-edged spots, 
viz., one apart from the rest and more rounded on posterior part of 
thorax, and four along abdomen ; on each side of abdomen a row of 
three similar, smaller, rounded spots.-^ Length J inch ; width (greatest 
across anterior part of abdomen) J inch. 
(Described from two specimens received alive from Miss F. Bowker, 
of Pembroke, near King William's Town, in February 1873. A third 
specimen had produced the imago en route, and I obtained perfect 
butterflies from the two pupae described. The figure on Plate 1. is 
from a drawing by Captain Harford, who noted that the species remained 
twenty-five days in the pupal state.) 
This lovely lolaus haunts wooded places, and, like most of the larger 
Lycsenids, is fond of perching on leaves at the summit of some tall shrub, i 
thence taking short jerky flights, and returning often to the same seat, or j 
to one close to the first. I noticed in Natal that the brilliant white of the 
under side, which looks so extremely conspicuous in the cabinet, was really 
protective to the insect when sitting among exceedingly glossy leaves in the 
full sunshine. Colonel Bowker found that, on the Bashee River, the flowers 
of mistletoe (Lora7iihus) were the favourite resort of this butterfly. I met j 
with Silas but sparingly during my visit to Natal in the months of February ! 
^ These spots are variable ; in one specimen the first, second, and third on back of 
abdomen are large and contiguous, while in another they are small and widely separate. 
In the latter, too, the lateral abdominal spots are altogether wanting. 
