892 
TARUCUS. By.H. Fruiistorfer. 
eyes, and to divide them into subordinate genera, were in vain. The presence [Syntarucus) or absence ( Tarucus) 
of the bristly hairing of the eyes has, particularly in opposition to Aurivillius, proved to be quite inapplicable, 
since just among the anatomically purest Syntarucus there appeared again two species with bare eyes. Just 
as little reliable proved to be the utilization of the position of the first subcostal vein which, moreover, in nearlv 
all the Tarucinae approaches the costal without anastomosing with it. Thereby we find at least a contrast 
created with the Lampides, a group of species possessing a frenum, and with Polyommatus , in which the sub¬ 
costal runs separated afar from the costal. Lampides and Polyommatus, however, are those genera between 
which Niceville has inserted the Tarucus and in the neighbourhood of which they may also remain. The 
close stuctural affinity of the Tarucus to the Gastalius was at first expressed by Niceville, and later on by 
Bingham (Fauna India 307) who coordinated the two genera by reason of the course of the veins on the hind- 
wings, whereas Swinhoe separated the groups of species of Tarucus and Syntarucus far from each other on 
•account of the hairing of the eyes, and he even divided them in two subordinate families by inserting the Tarucus 
in Vol. VII in the ,,Lycaenopsidae“ and the Syntarucus in the ,,Lycaeninae“ in Vol. VIII. 
Butler had already before subdivided the Tarucinae in no less than four genera, whereas Staudinger 
and Rebel in their catalogue on the contrary encased all the Tarucus known at present, as far as they inhabit 
the palearctic region, in their jumbled up, heterotypical genus ,, Lampides '‘. 
Considerable progress, however, in the judging of the Tarucus has been recently made by Courvoisieb 
who succeeded in finding in the androconia a mark common to at least a part of the Tarucinae. These are 
male scales with a peculiarly thickened sinus as the members of allied genera do not exhibit. We must, however, 
admit that of four species examined only three showed the common characteristic mark, whilst a fourth species 
(T. balkanica ) deviates considerably, exhibiting a retrogression to the Lycaenopsis. Of but little better result 
and more success the anatomy of the clasping-organs proved to be. By its application it was possible to separate 
with certainly different species, among which there were several doubtful ones, and even to prove some species 
that had before been placed in other genera to belong to the Tarucinae. But also here there were among 11 
species examined again 3 in which the chief characteristic mark of the other Tarucinae was absent, among 
them even the nomenclatural type of the genus (T. theophrastus). We must also consider that there is no corre¬ 
lation between the interior organs and the development of the androconia. Thus in the Tarucus the ever recurring 
fact is established that only a part of the species maintains the character of the genus, whilst species being 
allied in their exterior lose it again. We must thereby take into account that the species deviating from the 
type of the special genus almost invariably seek to obtain a junction with the organs of the chief genus Lycaena, 
so that thus only a part of the members of the split-off genera is modified and emancipated from the habitus 
of the Lycaena. The principal mark of the Tarucinae, however, is presumably the remarkably developed oedeagus, 
with an armature in the cuneus and the carina, which is even superior to that of the most strongly armed Casta- 
lius. In the Tarucus there are no enfeebled or intermediate fomns as in the Castaliinae , because the species 
are merely divided into such with a sharply armed or entirely unarmed oedeagus. 
The Tarucinae are, like the Libytheae, one of the few groups of species that are distributed over five 
continents, so that we may attribute to them, like the Libytheae, a great phyletic age. This assumption may 
also be testified by their resistency in maintaining the characters of the markings, for only 2 or 3 Tarucinae 
are inclined to the development of territorial races, and temporal forms are known only of just as many or 
even fewer species. Except T. venosus (153c) and two or three inhabitants of islands, the Tarucus belong to 
the most expansive Lycaenids, one of which ( cassius Vol. V, t. 144 1) has acquired for itself the whole neotropical 
district as a domicile, while another ( plinius , 153 b) inhabits the whole tropical and subtropical Austro-Malayan 
district. 
Analogous with the kindred Castaliinae, also the Tarucus must be regarded as inhabitants of the low¬ 
lands. They prefer hot, dry regions, for which reason they are entirely absent in the rainy island of Sumatra 
and are very rare in Borneo and Celebes, whilst in Java they are more frequent and the rainless island of Sumba 
even homes two species (T. plinius and T. theophrastus). According to Niceville, the Indian Tarucus are 
yet found at an altitude of about 1800 m. We owe the same author interesting accounts on the relations of 
the Tarucus to the ants. (Butt. India III, 1890, 190). 
The larva lives on Zizyphus jujuba and has already been described by Seitz in Vol. I, p. 293. To the 
same author we also owe the hitherto most detailed statements about the habits of the Tarucus. Of late Stauder 
reported that he observed colonies of Tarucus theophrastus in Algeria having reacted upon the sound of a whistle, 
but these statements must yet be re-examined. Lately Bell has given a most detailed description of the early 
stages of the Tarucus theophrastus and plinius in a very valuable essay on the knowledge of the common day- 
butterflies of the Indian lowlands (Journ. Bomb. Nat. Hist. Soc. 1918 Nr. 1, 115 to 121). Bell is, by reason 
