ZIZERA. 327 
aecentue que celiii du male. C'etto cspece appartient an meme groupc que L. hjshnon, 
Hiibner. 
" Decrite sur six males ct uue femelle." (Ponjaih', 1. c.) 
I have specimens of this species from every locality I \isited in Japan and 
Corea, and also from each of the places in China that Messrs. Pratt and 
Kricheldorff collected in; also a number of Indian examples from Sikkim. 
With this large amount of material before me I am therefore able to realize 
something of the extensive variation to which the species is subject, and 
I have no hesitation whatever in placing L. argia, Menetries ; L. Japomca, 
Murray; Z. alope, Teuton; L. opalina and L. marginata, Poujade, as forms 
of one species, i. e., Zizera {Lyccena) malm, Kollar. In this opinion 1 am 
supported by Mr. de Niceville, who iu his ' Butterflies of India ' (vol. iii. 
p. 113), discussing the variation of Indian Z maha, says: — "There is very 
little doubt in my mind that the ' Lyccena ' argia, Menetries (of which 
Z. japomca, Murray, and Z. alope, Fenton, are synonyms), which occurs in 
China, Japan, and Corea, should be added to the synonymy of this species." 
Mr. Elwes (Trans. Ent. Soc. Lond. 1888, p. 380) also holds this view, and 
adds L. diluta, Felder, and L. similis, Moore, as synonyms. ' 
The type of L. japomca, Murray, is a female, and is said to differ from argia 
in the absence of the marginal spots on the secondaries ; but as every gradation 
is exhibited between specimens of Z. maha with the typical markings w^ell 
developed, and others in which the macular ornamentation of the outer margin 
of secondaries is entirely absent, the distinction referred to by Murray is of 
no specific value whatever. 
The principal differential characters upon which Mr. Fenton separates his 
alope from argia, Menetries { = maha, Kollar), are (1) the deeper violet 
colouring, (2) the broader border to primaries, (3) the absence of black spot 
from cell on under surface of primaries. The colour of Z. maha is most 
variable in intensity, and the width of the marginal border seems to vaiy in 
proportion to the depth of the ground-colour. Then with regard to the black 
spot in the cell on under surface of primaries, I find that this character is a 
very variable one both in size and definition, and sometimes is altogether 
absent. I have one specimen in which this spot is present on one wing and 
absent fi'om the other. 
The pale males with narrow borders are usually refen-ed to var.y^^wn/m, 
with which opalina, Poujade, is synonymous ; these appear in the spring and 
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