Pull . 27 . VI . 1924 . 
LYCAENA. By Dr. A. Seitz. 
929 
L. omphissa Mr. (= metallica Fldr. p. p.) (1531, m and Vo). I, t. 79 i). Hindwing beneath dull ver¬ 
digris, instead of the ocelli but very few light small spots. It enters into Indian territory in the North Western 
Himalaya. 
L. galathea Blch. is extraordinarily similar to omphissa ; the J above intensely metallic dark blue, 
beneath the hindwing as well as the apex of the forewing are of a very bright bluish green; in the hindwing 
there is only at the cell-end a small white diffuse spot and a curved chain of such spots extends about in the 
middle between this cell-end spot and the margin through the disc of the hindwing. The $ of this form figured 
by Felder (but marked as metallica) does not belong to this form but to the closely allied omphissa. North 
Western Himalaya to Simla. — nycula Mr. from Kunawur in the Himalaya differs from typical galathea by 
the being above more violettish-blue; beneath the distal part of the disc of the forewing is darker grey, almost 
dark brown, the apex always suffused with green. The hindwing is still darker metallic green, in the $ especially 
very dark. 
L. orbitulus Esp. ( — meleager Hhn. nec Esp.) (Vol. I, t. 79 f). This European alpine lepidopteron 
also occurs in a number of forms in the North Western Himalaya, some of which may in Cashmir also encroach 
upon the Indian region. All the forms of it have been dealt with in Vol. I, p. 307, to which we refer; they 
are: jaloka Mr. (on the passes of Rajdiangan, Sursungar and Stakpila, as well as near Baitul in Cashmir); 
besides leela Nic. from Ladakh, and ellisi Mrsh. from Pangi, at an altitude of 12 000 ft. — It seems, however, 
that also armathoa (153 1) and the very large tyrone (153 m) which Frlthstorfer had figured here, must be 
inserted at this place. 
L. pheretes Him. (Vol. I, t. 79 h, i). Also this otherwise European alpine lepidopteron occurs in the 
mountains bordering on the Indian region in the Cashmirian Himalaya and its foothills in a number of forms 
which may yet be transformed into separate species. — lehanus Mr. (153 m and Vol. I, t. 79 i) flies in Ladakh 
at altitudes of 8 to 12 000 ft.; comp, also Vol. I, p. 308. — asiatica Elw. resembles lehanus; but the wings 
are shorter, obtuser. Tipper surface of the <j$ deep dark blue metallic , not with a violettish-blue reflection 
as in pheretes and lehanus. On the forewing beneath the discal spots being distinct in lahanus are absent 
or reduced to 1 or 2 minute diffuse spots. From Sikkim, the Chumbi Valley, at altitudes of 12 to 
1500 ft. — We may add to them arfenita (153 m) with a distinct, and pharis Fawc. (153 nr) with an indistinct 
marking beneath. — Hereto probably also belongs the small form philebus (153 nr), as well as dscha- 
gataica (153 m) sent by Frtthstorfer in the same series for being figured. From the greatest altitude of 
15 000 ft. on the Mount Everest Expedition janigena Riley w T as described, being very much like artenita Fruhst., 
but the marginal whitish patches of the hindwing beneath are larger and more prominent, and also in the basal 
part of the hindwing there are a great number of ocelli emanating into diffuse spots. Above the form is presu¬ 
mably difficult to distinguish from pheretulus which it also equals in size, but the discal dot of the forewing 
is in the $ less distinct and in the $ it is not at all prominent. — All these forms are alpine insects 
which are probably just as common at their habitats as their European allies. 
L. baton Bgstr. (= hylas Schiff., hylus F., amphion Esp.) (Vol. I, t. 79 d) is very common in Southern 
Europe and Northern Africa, and extends across the orient and Anterior Asia to the Himalaya where it flies 
in the forms cashmirensis Mr. (1531) (comp. Vol. I, p. 305). As the figure shows, the under surface exhibits 
the character of the forms abencerragus and panoptes being distributed from Spain across Northern Africa 
to Egypt, but the black ocelli are very distinctly contrasting with the silvery greyish-blue ground of the wings. 
In the Himalayan valleys along the frontier of Tibet the imago is not common, ,,it is seen there on wet meadows 
flying from one blossom to another; Chini in Central Kunawur" etc. — vicrama Mr. differs from cashmirensis 
by the absence of the discal spot above, and by the absence of small white marginal lunae; in vicrama the veins 
above are besides not black and on the under surface the dark ocelli are more distinctly bordered with 
light; according to specimens taken at great altitudes in Kunawur. All the authors who examined greater 
numbers of them seem to agree in the fact that vicrama and cashmirensis are connected by transitions. As 
to the larva and the life-history comp. Vol. I, p. 305. 
L. astrarche Bgstr. (= medon Hufn., agestis Schiff.) (Vol. I, t. 79 k). This lepidopteron being common 
throughout Europe, Northern Africa and Northern Asia as far as the Amur District (though I did not find 
it in Japan) also occurs in Anterior Asia as far as North West India where it is found in the form nazira Mr. 
(153 1) *) which is scarcely maintainable as a separate race. The North Indian form, as the figure shows, has 
only moderately broad red submarginal spots, not the broad, confluent, red marginal band of cramera as it 
is so commonly and distinctly found at the western part near the palearctic southern frontier. Moreover, there 
*) In the table the name „omphissa“ printed above ..nazira 11 is to be eliminated. 
omphissa. 
(jalathea. 
nycula. 
orbitulus. 
jaloka. 
leela. 
ellisi. 
armathoa. 
tyrone. 
pheretes. 
lehanus. 
asiatica. 
artenita. 
pharis. 
philebus. 
dschagatai- 
ca. 
janigena. 
baton. 
cashmiren¬ 
sis. 
vicrama. 
astrarche. 
nazira. 
IX 
117 
