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ROTHSCHILDIA. By Dr. M. Drattdt. 
Type: R. hesperus L. 
aurota. R. aurota Cr. (= ethra Oliv., atlas Oliv.) is one of the largest and best known species with a rather 
much produced apex of the forewing, collar predominantly brown, only in front and behind with a white line; 
antemedian line somewhat shortly, notch-like produced on the veins, the portion between the lower cell-edge 
and the inner margin rather straight, hyaline spot obliquely triangular, the proximal margin concave, the 
distal point extending into the strongly and irregularly notched postmedian line; characteristic are the very 
long and strong notches of the pinkish grey subterminal band. The pinkish-white subapical spot is outside 
defined by an almost straight white line, the black triangular spot behind it is large, on its outside a dark red 
narrow crescent; the black submarginal line forms very regular bows: hindwing of <$ very long, in the submarginal 
bow there are small black bows turning reddish towards the costal margin. Southern Central America, but 
speculifer. chiefly from Guiana. —- speculifer Wlcr. (102 b), according to the kind information by Dr. Jordan, is the 
common South-Eastern Brazilian subspecies with somewhat shorter hindwings, otherwise differing little from 
the nomenclatural form, only being mostly somewhat darker, more chestnut brown in the ground-colour. — 
andensis. andensis Rothsch. is still much darker chestnut red in the median area, the metathorax also white like the basal 
abdominal band; the greyish pink subterminal notches still more distinct, the white postmedian line less 
strongly notched, its black interior border much less prominent; hindwing considerably shorter. From South- 
Eastern Peru at altitudes of 2 or 3000 m. Much farther to the north in Mexico, the species is represented by 
roxana. a very large, broad-winged form with a but slightly produced apex of the forewing: roxana Sells. (102 a) of 
a very dark chestnut ground-colour, with larger, longer extended hyaline spots, the proximal margin of which 
is deeper concave, whilst the distal point extends beyond the white postmedian line which is but little notched; 
the dents of the subterminal band are also less developed. By the minute examination of the genital organs 
the specific difference may be found. The larva of speculifer is green with a somewhat lighter lateral stripe 
and small red tubercles. It lives on Ricinus and other plants. 
chiris. R. chiris Rothsch. is very similar in its exterior to aurota , but different in the genital organs; antennal 
dents somewhat longer, legs and methatorax less white; ground-colour at least in the disc above deep chestnut 
red, the white postmedian line extends from the costal margin in an almost straight line to 2 / 3 of the inner 
margin and is strongly undulate, its black interior border broad, basally faded, the blackish-brown line outside 
of it less densely scaled white than in aurota , behind the black subapical spot there are 2 black spots, not a 
dark red crescent; on the hindwing all the submarginal spots are black, only the uppermost feebly tinted red. 
From the dry season, South-Eastern Peru, at an altitude of 6000 m. 
hesperus. R. hesperus L. (103 a). Dr. Jordan writes me about this species: ‘ l Linne’s hesperus has nearly always 
been wrongly identified. Linne quotes Merian’s plate 52 under “ atlas ” and plate 65 under “hesperus”; 
he says that hesperus is more yellowish than atlas and that the larva is smooth, i. e. he has 
probably made his description according to Median’s plate. We have this light hesperus, which is very similar 
to betis, from French Guiana and the Amazons, and the grown-up larva has in fact no tubercles. Ploetz’ 
figures as “ procyon ” belong to this place; it is quite wrong to identify hesperus as a South-Eastern Brazilian 
insect; the typical locality for Linne’s types is Surinam (from Dutch collections), whilst nothing at all came 
from South-Eastern Brazil at that time.” Hesperus is smaller on an average than aurota, lighter yellowish 
brown, the prothorax white, the metathorax not white; the antemedian line forms very characteristic round 
distal convexities in the cell and between it and the inner margin; the hyaline spots are relatively small, all the 
3 sides in the £ slightly concave, the distal point just interrupts yet the black inner border of the postmedian 
line which is rather uniformly undulated, forming inward bows, on the veins distal points; the greyish pink 
notched band behind it is generally not very prominent and narrower than in aurota, the notches thereby 
somewhat shorter; behind the black subapical spot there are 2 small black sjiots more or less mixed with red. 
Panama to Guiana, Amazons, and Eastern Colombia. From Western Colombia (Bella Vista) originates (e Coll. 
Niepelt) a most magnificent form, probably the most variegated of all the Rothschildia-iorms: poecilator 
poecitator. /. n. (134a); median area Pompeian red, submarginal area orange-red, the lilac-wliite notched band before it 
distally very brightly bordered with dark brown; hyaline spots larger than in hesperus, their sides hardly 
concave, the white of the postmedian line has almost vanished owing to its broad orange distal border and the 
likewise broad black inner border; the large light subapical area is bluish-white, distally almost light blue, 
behind the black triangular subapical spot there are crimson spots; the flat black submarginal lunae are inside 
filled with olive yellow, the marginal area behind it is loamy brown, crossed by orange-red, subapically black 
veins. On the hindwing the 6 uppermost submarginal spots are crimson. At once discernible from the somewhat- 
similar chiris by the entirely white collar. 
betis. R. betis Wkr. (102 c) is of a still lighter orange yellow ground-colour, the antemedian line not convex, 
the apex of the forewing more produced, the postmedian line therefore more oblique, much less notched, between 
the costal margin and hyaline spot hardly notched, the white portion broad, the orange distal border narrow; 
