120 
PIERIDAE. By H. Fruhstorfer. 
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eating one another with no apparent cause and in case of want of food even attacking the larvae of other species. 
It has also been observed that Appias- larvae for instance greedily devoured the pupae of Leptosia (R f.lt, ). 
The larvae of some species, such as Hebomoia glaucippe, which are ornamented with eye-spots, some¬ 
times assume a terrifying attitude and are said to look like small snakes. On this account, according to Piepers, 
the Javanese are even afraid of these larvae. 
The pupae as a rule have a pointed, sometimes snout-shaped head and are sometimes protectively adapted 
to their surroundings. When they hang down from leaves they are green, near the cassia flowers yellow, and 
when fastened on grasses they become black-brown like the grass-seeds or like dried pods (Martin, Piepers). 
The length of the pupal stage varies somewhat, lasting in Terias only 6 days. 
In neuration the Pierids stand nearest to the Papilionids, from which, however, they are distinguished 
by the proportionately larger hindwing. The hindwing is always especially broad, being traversed by a second 
inner-marginal vein, which is absent in the Papilionids, and moreover is often so widened as to partly envelop 
the abdomen. 
The contour of the wings is mostly rounded, but there occur also long and narrow, as well as sharply 
pointed and angled forewings and strongly dentate hindwings. Tails, as are frequently found in the Papilionids 
and many Nymphalids, are, however, entirely absent. 
The ground-colour is predominantly white with black transverse stripes, yet we also find red, yellow, orange, 
bluish, brown, black colours and beneath, though very rarely, even green colouring. But nearly throughout there is 
a vivid contrast between the mostly unicolorous upper surface and the often very gay under surface. All the 
markings, however, can easily be traced back to a row of marginal spots and a row of submarginal ones alter¬ 
nating with them, as well as some circumcellular patches (Auriyillius). In the more temperate districts of the 
subtropical zone, especially if by vertical elevation they are removed a few degrees further back into the 
colder zone, the components of the fauna still belong to the Palaearctic genera with their primitive and monoton¬ 
ous colouring. The nearer the tropical zone, however, the brighter becomes the colouring, which is charmingly 
shown even on the small Sunda Islands with their comparatively few species. 
In general the Pierids have a long season of flight, and in the commonest species of Catopsilia, Appias, 
Pieris, Terias the successive generations overlap. 
The like most butterflies, are throughout sun-loving and gregarious, whilst the prefer the shade 
of the woods, where they are occupied in seeking suitable food-plants for their offspring. As they travel less, 
they are never met with at the drinking-places, but appear to be satisfied with a smaller supply of water, which 
they find for instance on the leaves of the forest-vegetation. 
Many Pierids present typical examples of that resemblance to other butterflies which has been named 
Mimicry. — The origin of this resemblance, however, is now explained by the supposition that the mimics were 
modified by the same (as yet unknown) influences under which the colouring of the models, mostly Danaids, 
developed. 
On the continent only a few species are localised, as their distinctions are very easily effaced by migration, 
whilst on the islands the representatives of one and the same species are broken up into a varied series, the forms 
occurring near to the centre of the range being still very similar to the primitive tjqre, whilst those at the extreme 
limit can scarcely be recognised as belonging to the same species. 
Very interesting zoogeographically is the conflict of two large faunistic regions in the Malay Archipelago, 
the Oriental and the Australian, which were formerly believed to be separated by Wallace’s line of division. 
Another interesting phenomenon is that the three large Sunda Islands often produce the same species 
as the Malay Peninsula — and that both Malacca and Perak have many more species in common with Sumatra 
and Borneo than with India and Burma — and especially that the Malay forms almost without exception assume 
the character of insular races. This peculiarity in the fauna goes hand in hand with a similar pecularity in the 
flora and is repeated in all families of Lepidoptera and in other insects, so that it was desirable to introduce a 
collective name for this geographical zone. As the expression ,,large Sunda Islands 11 , hitherto in use, onl} r 
includes Borneo, Sumatra and Java, and takes no account of the Malay Peninsula, ,,Macromalayana“ was 
chosen — in contrast to ,,Micromalayana“, for a faunistic region which begins with the island of Bawean, 
north of Java, and not, as hitherto accepted, with Bali, and embraces all the small Sunda Islands. 
The originals for the figures of plates 50—-73, with the exception of a very few figures which were taken 
from specimens in the British Museum, are exclusively from the collection of Fruhstorfer in Genf-Florissant. 
in which are also contained the types of the new forms and races which are here described for the first lime. 
