PYRAMEIS. By H. Fruhstorfer. 
525 
Scudder’s figure (Butt. New England). The species of this genus are widely distributed. Cardui for instance 
is found throughout the entire continent of Asia exepting the portion within the arctic circle, ranging over all 
the islands as well as Australia. All the others are Alpine species. 
P. cardui (Vol. 1, p. 199, pi. 62 d), called ’’the painted lady“ in England, and ’’belle dame“ in France, 
’’hitne tateba“ or ”kime cho cho“ (’’the red maid“) in Japan. Found throughout India, from Bombay to Burmah 
and Ceylon as well as to the Andaman Islands. Scarce in the plains of Bengal, it becomes very abundant 
on the higher mountains, adapting itself even to elevations of over 13000 ft. above the level of the sea 
and appearing occasionally in immense swarms which migrate to other regions. —- cardui L. is a particularly 
small race found on the grassy table-land of Battak in Sumatra and on the Tengger mountains in 
eastern Java, whilst on the western volcanoes it attains a rather sturdy size displaying very large, black 
spots on the upperside of the h. w. Thus specimens from western Java resemble those from Japan which have 
been given the specific name of japonica Stick, only on account of their great size, whereas the other features 
by which the author characterizes japonica, cannot be confirmed. — I took japonica in Tsushima in September. 
cardui is plentiful in Formosa, but very scarce in the northwestern portion of Luzon and in Palawan. — kershawi 
McCoy , represents a very distinct local race, inhabiting the whole of Australia and bearing on the upperside of 
the h. w. three intramedian blue submarginal ocelli. Under surface of h. w. darker, with grey-white instead of 
yellowish, longitudinal fasciae. — suffusa OIL is a dark aberrative form from New South Wales, and elymi Rarnb. 
(Vol. 1, p. 199) was taken by me on the table-land of Pangalenga in western Java at an elevation of 4700 ft. 
P. indica (Vol. 1, p. 199) may be considered, like the preceding species, to be of palaearctic origin 
having presumably spread from China to the southern slopes of the Himalayas and to the Philippine Islands. 
I discovered it in S. Celebes which it may have reached from the latter islands. According to Oberthur it is 
also found in Australia, and Alfken mentions it from New-Zealand under the name of atalanta. There are 3 
local forms known: indica Herbst, (Vol. 1, pi. 62c), is occasionally found in Bombay; its chief haunts are how¬ 
ever the alpine regions where it has been observed in November at elevations of 16 000 ft., on the glaciers 
in the Sikkim Himalayas, the only living creature in those bleak regions. In the N. W. Himalayas hibernated 
specimens were met with just as atalanta is with us in Spring, indica becomes rare at the Burmah-Chinese 
frontier. According to Walker it is scarce in Hongkong, flying from Decbr. till May, more abundant in the 
Chusan Archipelago. Specimens in my coll, from the northwestern portion of Luzon bear pure white spots on 
the f. w., otherwise they are hardly to be distinguished from specimens from India. — asakurae Mats, is a For¬ 
mosan form with only two instead of three black spots in the red area on the f. w. Specimens collected for 
me by Mr. Sauter in Formosa at an elevation of about 4000 ft do not differ either from those collected by 
me in Tsushima in the end of Sept, nor from indica found in India or Japan. — buana Fruhst. which must be 
considered as a quite distinct local form of indica Herbst (cal/iroe Hbn., callirhoe Mill.) came from the northern 
slopes of the peak of Bonthain, S. Celebes at about 4000 ft. alt. I named it buana after the Gelebian name of 
the mountain Bua-Kraeng. — This form differs from the typical indica form Sikkim, Japan, and Mu-Pin in having 
the ground colour of the basal half of both wings much more obscured with black-brown, whereas in indica it 
is pale grayish-red possessing a dull gloss. The 3 black median spots on the f. w., of which the upper one 
is within the cell and which in indica are isolated from each other, form here a confluent band. The white 
apical and subapical specks and rows of dots are much smaller than in indica. The terminal border on the h. 
w. of buana is analogous to that of indica, however the 4 spots which are scattered over the red submarginal 
band are shaped like a helmet in buana, having an oval form in indica. Four specimens of a further sub¬ 
species which I received from the mountains of Ceylon and which I described under the name nubicola Frulist. 
(117 c), deviate still more from the typical indica in as much as the whole distal border of the h. w. is broadly 
bordered with an intense black, whilst buana and indica have a greatly reduced narrow anal border. All .the 
other marks of distinction found in buana apply also to nubicola. Owing to the predominant melanotic tinge of 
the basal and apical areas on the f. w., the red median band which reddish-brown in buana is in nubicola a 
deep crimson, is considerably reduced. Whilst in indica the black spot in the cell is enclosed within the light- 
red median band, in nubicola the black tinge spreads to such a degree that only a thin, dark red curve is left; 
in buana finally all traces of red have vanished and the deep black spots unite into a confluent median band 
which closely surrounds the brown-red base of the wings and gradually fuses with it. — The larva of nubicola 
lives on Urtica nelgherriensis; the imago flies in wooded localities at 3—6000 ft. alt. It is almost never seen 
in continental collections. Occurs at Nuwara Elliya and in the Horton plains, flying nearly the whole year 
round. — pholoe subsp. nov. from the Nilgiris, contained in the British Museum, is the transition from nubicola 
to the northern form indica. The red transverse band on the f. w. changes into orange exteriorly, and the 
horse-shoe-like cell which in nubicola is so characteristically filiform becomes a little broader. The h. w. are 
considerably lighter at the distal margin. 
P. samani Hag. (117 b) of which only one specimen has been found in the Karo Mountains, Sumatra, 
replaces dejeani (117 c) in that island and differs from its eastern form in the red-yellow upper surface of 
the h. w. (Flies at about 3000—3800 ft. alt.). 
cardui. 
japonica. 
kershawi- 
suffusa 
elymi. 
indica. 
asakurae. 
buana. 
nubicola. 
pholoe. 
samani. 
