CYRESTIS. By H. Frithstorfer. 
58] 
it appears again farther east in the most remote of the Smaller Sunda Islands, Lombok, Sumba, and Sumbawa, and 
in New Guinea and Waigeu, finding its eastern limits in the Solomon Archipelago and the Loyalty Islands in 
the Pacific Ocean. The submarginal band on the hindwing which is adorned with a bluish centre-line, con¬ 
tinues also on the forewing, until it reaches the second median, where it is interrupted only to appear again 
near the apex a little distance above or below the lower radial. The forewing has in all the white species of the 
Sykophages- group at the anal angle proximally to the shortened and excavated corner a yellow spot, which in 
this group is placed so far inward, that its inner basal margin coincides with that of the outer third of the 
wing. — thyodainas Bsd. occurs throughout its entire range in two varietal forms, one of which is whitish thyodama 
and the other yellowish in colour, and which are connected by numerous intermediate forms. But in the 
southern part of India we do not meet with any yellow specimens, which at first were looked upon as 
only in the western Himalayas the $$ are according to de Niceville usually yellow, and for them the name 
ganesha Roll, may be retained. That the yellow specimens represent a seasonal form, is precluded, as both ganesha. 
forms occur together; but we must assume that it is a sort of Dimorphism peculiar to Cyrestis, which we ob¬ 
serve also in other species of this genus, thyodamas varies in two directions in as much as it is subject to sea¬ 
sonal Dimorphism as ivell as Melanism, which becomes more outspoken the farther east we go; as the rainy- 
season form is darker than that of the dry-season, it has a great deal in common with the dark forms of the 
far East, whereas the specimens from the most arid regions of India proper (Nilgiris, Musorie and Nepal) agree 
very well with the small, light-coloured, dry-season forms of Burmah, Siam, Annam, Tonkin and Yunnan, and 
on the other hand the rainy-season specimens of Sikkim closely approach the dark Chinese forms. The 
melanotic colouring is chiefly manifested in the meridional stripes, on the forewing in the apex and that portion 
of the discal area near the third median nervule, where the third (outer) meridional stripe comes closest to the 
inner line of the submarginal band, and in the submarginal band on the hindwing. The third meridional stripe 
and submarginal band on the forewing are connected by a nearly quadrate, sooty-black spot, which is invaria¬ 
bly found in the specimens from China, Loo-Choo and Japan, but only occasionally in the rainy-season speci¬ 
mens from Sikkim, thyodamas has the chain-pattern but feebly developed and only indicated on the hind¬ 
wing by two faint links at the anal end of the submarginal band, and on the forewing by an incomplete, out¬ 
wardly open, C-shaped link placed immediately above the yellow spot at the anal angle. The slender body, 
striped with blackish and yellow-brown, with the long palpi and prominent eyes, has a certain resemblance to 
a shrimp. The yellow variety has the thorax and abdomen lighter yellow, displaying in reflected light a golden 
lustre. Southern Burmah and Tenasserim represent the south-eastern limits of the range of thyodamas, where 
it is found together with nivalis Fldr. But Staudinger’s statement that it is not found outside of Continen¬ 
tal India, has been disproved by Dr. Seitz and others. If I would consult my personal feelings, I should 
not give separate names to the various local forms of thyodamas , for the reason that there exist between the 
lightest dry-season form from the western Himalayas and the darkest summer form of southern Japan all 
possible intermediate forms; but as the differences between them are after all rather great and, especially in 
larger series, quite conspicuous and constant, and as I have in previous works laid the foundation for a sub¬ 
division of the species, I enumerate also here the hitherto published descriptions. —• formosana Fruhst. is a formosana. 
most variable insular race, surpassing in the extent of the dark portions found in the rainy-season form all the 
other Cyrestis ; at the same time the yellowish subanal portion of the hinclwings is greatly reduced, whereas 
the blue striping on the forewing is distinctly augmented. The dry-season form approximates mabella of the 
Liukiu Islands, and some $$-specimens approach even the dry-season-^^ found in Sikkim, from which they 
deviate by the clearer white ground-colour, which is laved with a delicate pink, and by the light yellow border 
on both wings. Not scarce in Formosa during June and July, near Lehiku Lake and Chip-Chip. — mabella mabella. 
Fruhst. from the island of Oshima comprises undoubtedly also the Japanese subspecies described by Pryer 
(Rhop. Nihon, p. 23, pi. V, fig. 14), as it is identical with the few known specimens from southern Japan. Next 
to formosana it is without any doubt the darkest form, having the meridional stripes and the brown-black apex 
of the forewing broader than any other subspecies; the third meridional stripe is at the third median connected 
with the inner line of the submarginal band by a more or less distinct sooty-black spot. The yellow markings 
are replaced by brown, which also fills the space between the inner and outer lines of the submarginal band on 
the hindwing surrounding the central line, which is broken up into single streaks. The blue ornamental line 
is uncommonly broad, and the only link of the chain visible on the forewing between the first and second me¬ 
dian nervules forms an almost complete oval, and encloses a minute white triangle, presenting its base toward 
the base of the wing. The white specimens have the ground-colour clearer white, but we find also in this sub¬ 
species the yellow variety. The average size of the individuals, which I formerly used as a means of distinction 
between the subspecies, is of no use, since the rainy-season forms are in this species invariably larger than those 
of the dry-season, whence it may happen that specimens from Continental India approach in size those from China 
and Japan, although the latter are in general the larger (Martin). ■ — - afghana Mart. Afghanistan. The 5 speci- afghana. 
