226 
EUPLOEA. By H. Fruhstorfer. 
vanilla. The smell is in general dependent on the food and we may assume that it probably protects the Eu- 
ploeas from insectiverous attacks. It is true that Piepers observed on Java that birds caught and devoured 
living Euploeas in his garden in Batavia, which to some extent would prove the protection to be of less vital 
importance. 
In general the Euploeids are fond of flowers and sometimes occur in great abundance. In Siam I ob¬ 
served in a half dried-up wood a positively ghostly swarm of the butterflies, hundreds of which were resting 
in the underwood in rows one above another, and when anyone passed through the wood they rose up in alarm, 
fluttering about in confusion like bats, but in a short time settling down again. 
In Hong-Kong at the end of October I saw Euploeids clinging to the fiery red flowers of Hibiscus and 
occasionally I met with them in Siam in the dry season on rocks over which water trickled. In Tonkin mul- 
ciber frequented places on the road which were fouled with urine, also I repeatedly baited it with rags soaked 
in excrement, which often attracted dozens of individuals. 
On the continent of India the first brood appears already at the end of February, when the Euploeids 
afford a charming spectacle in the forests, as they describe light curves with their mysteriously iridescent ul¬ 
tramarine pinions or move forwards in a straight line, only to dip down again afterwards as if to display anew 
their beautiful dress with complacent satisfaction. 
They are all in the habit of flying from 9 o’clock till towards midday, then disappearing and only com¬ 
ing out again in large numbers when the sun is nearing the west. 
Sexual dimorphism is more pronounced in the Euploeids than in the other Danaids, and has even in 
one case led to the erection of two genera for the two sexes of one species. Horodimorphism on the other hand 
only occurs in rare cases and even then not to any very marked extent. Euploeas are even more than Dana- 
ida attached to the plains. In the Malay Archipelago no species ascends above 2000 m; and even in the Hima¬ 
layas only core and muiciber reach 7000 ft. All without exception love the moist, warm tropical climate, but 
they are never found at dry localities either hot or cold; they are fond of small, isolated woods in the midst 
of cidtivated tracts, as well as the edges of woods. A large number prefer the wooded sea-shore and disappear 
when human activity disturbs the quiet of the woods, but others again fearlessly sail about in open places in 
the large towns of South Asia. Starting from two centres of distribution, continental India and New Guinea, 
the number of species rapidly decreases on the remote island groups. Northwards they are still numerous on 
Formosa, but on the Loo Choo Islands they become extremely rare. 
In spite of the abundance of the individuals the complete life cycle is only known of extraordinarily 
few species. We may also still look for the discovery of many species and numerous island races, especially 
on the satellite islands of Sumatra, Celebes and New Guinea. 
Group Crastia Hbn. (1816). 
Larva with four pairs of fleshy appendages. 
With recurrent vein in the cell of the forewing at the origin of the lower radial. Scent-patch of the hindwing 
absent. Anal pencil short, without double hair-pencil. 
Subgroup a. Forewing without distinctly visible sexual stripes (Nipara, Oranasnia, Patosa, Sarobia, Vadebra, 
Lontara, Gamatoba, Menama, Tronga, Sabanosa, Adigama [Moork 1883]). 
E. climena is an inconspicuous species, distributed from the Nicobars and Engano to the Moluccas, 
at the same time one of the smallest known, but occurring in colour-variations according to the'locality. A 
simulairix. pronounced inhabitant of the coast-lowlands and of remote islands. — siniulalrix Wood-Mas. Above dark 
brown, the margins broadly lighter, $ throughout paler than the <$, both wings in the unspotted above, on¬ 
ly the $ bears a small violet-whitish costal patch. Under surface of the forewing as in all the other forms with 
a violet-white dot before the apex of the cell, three blue transcellular spots and occasionally some subapical 
patches. Hindwing likewise with a punctiform spot, and three to four beyond the discocellular. Nicobars. 
enganensis. Very rare, imknown to me in nature. — enganensis Doll. (81 e). Above fine deep velvety black with a pure 
white dot before the end of the cell in the and three in the $$. Hindwing, particularly that of the 
with distinct sub marginal spots and a row of subterminal dots on the underside. The commonest Euploea 
sepulchral is. of Engano, I have received over 100 examples taken in April, of which, however, very few are $$. — sepul- 
chralis Btlr. is a somewhat smaller and paler race, which occurs very commonly in the neighbourhood of Batavia. 
Hindwing of the $ with appreciably lighter, brownish white patch, which is somewhat more extended beneath. 
lerissa. West Java, Island of Bawean. — terissa subsp. nov. is the local form of Eastern Java, where it ascends 
to about 500—600 m on the spurs of the Tengger Mountains. Above it always shows a distinct white area on 
the hindwing, which beneath reaches to the apex of the cell, in extreme examples even occurring as a pure 
ehvesiana. white marginal area, so that there is a certain similarity on the hindwing to E. euripon (86 e). — elwesiana 
Nicev. is a smaller race, originally described from Bali, where, as well as on Lombok and Sumbawa, it is no¬ 
where rare up to about 700 m. Hindwing with somewhat less white than terissa , under surface with almost 
macleari. obsolete dots beyond the cell. — macleari Btlr. likewise resembles lerissa, but is even smaller than ehvesiana. 
