ACRAEA. By Dr. 0. Aurivillitts. 
279 
band of the forewing and in having both wings above more broadly black at the base. Nigeria to the Congo.-— 
In eginopsis Auriv. the forewing of the $ has a blackish ground-colour above and has only in the distal eginopsis. 
half of cellules 1 a and 1 b a large red-yellow spot; the hindwing coloured as in the type-form. Sierra Leone 
to Togoland. $-ab. pheusaca Stiff. Forewing above yellow-brown as far as the ochre-yellow subapical band, plieusaca. 
with the black dots small or absent; hindwing above brown-yellow with small discal dots; occurs together 
with abdera. $-ab. sucepha Stiff. Wings above with red-yellow ground-colour as in the A and the sucepha. 
forewing with white subapical band. Marginal band of the hindwing above with yellow marginal spots. Among 
the type-form. -—- $-ab. nigrescens Eltr. (54 f; as abdera Q). Both wings above black-brown with distinct black nigrescens. 
dots; the hindwing above somewhat lighter before the marginal band; the latter with marginal spots; is pro¬ 
bably the $ of eginopsis. Sierra Leone. 
A. perenna Dbl. & Hew. (54 e) is distinguished by the long, narrow forewing, with the termen emargi- perenna, 
nate, almost exactly the same shape as in Papilio antimachus; the discal dots are large and on the hindwing 
are placed near the base of their cellules (the one in 3 seems to be always absent); forewing above black 
with yellow-red hindmarginal spot, which covers the middle of cellules 1 a to 2, beneath lighter, at the distal 
margin broadly yellowish with black veins and stripes on the interneural folds. Hindwing above black nearly 
to the discal dots, then with red transverse band and at the distal margin with black, red-spotted marginal 
band, beneath much lighter, at the base greenish yellow with free dots and some red spots or stripes close to 
the base; marginal band as above. Larva black with yellow spots; head and spines black. Sierra Leone to Angola, 
Uganda and Nairobi. — In thesprio Oberth. (54 e) the red-yellow colour of the forewing more or less completely thesprio. 
covers also the cell and the base of cellules 3 to 6. Katanga; Nyassaland; German and British East Africa. 
— kaffana Eothsch. (59 f) nearly agrees with thesprio, but has the discal dots larger and the marginal band of kajfana. 
the hindwing broader. Abyssinia. 
A. egina Cr. (54 d) is much larger than perenna and has the wings quite differently shaped, but is very egina. 
similarly coloured in the male. In this sex the forewing is blackish, in the middle somewhat transparent, and 
has at the hinder angle in 1 a and 1 b a large yellow-red spot, which, however, does not extend beyond vein 2; 
hindwing above black at least as far as vein 2, then with broad yellow-red transverse band and broad, unspot¬ 
ted black marginal band, somewhat dentate at the veins, the discal dot in 4 placed nearer to the distal 
margin than the rest. Fore wing beneath almost as above, but lighter and more thinly scaled; hind wing beneath 
light reddish with red spots at the base and at the marginal band and between the large, free black dots more or 
less greenish yellow; marginal spots large, quadrate, greenish yellow; collar red; last half of the abdomen 
light yellow. In the $ the ground-colour of both wings is black grey without red-yellow spots, but with an in¬ 
definite whitish subapical band on the forewing. Larva whitish yellow with two black longitudinal lines on 
each side; head and spines black. Pupa whitish with very fine black markings. Senegal to Angola, Nyassaland 
and Uganda. — harrisoni E. Sharpe. In the borderlands between the West and East African subregions harrisoni. 
there usually occur also in this species transitions to the East African race. These are distinguished by having 
the red-yellow colour of the forewing present not only in 1 a and 1 b, but also as fine longitudinal streaks 
first in 2 and then also in the other cellules; the under surface of the hindwing is for the most part suffused 
with orange-yellow; the discal dots are sometimes as large as in egina, sometimes much smaller, particularly on 
the hindwing, ab. contraria Griinb. (= kiwuensis Griinb.). Rhodesia; Nyassaland and on the shores of the Vic- coniraria. 
toria Nyanza. — areca Mob. (54 e) is the East African race and following the rule which obtains in almost areca. 
all African Acraeids is characterized by having the red-yellow colour of the forewing more extended, more or 
less completely covering the cell and the base of cellules 2 to 6; the under surface of the hindwing is for the 
most part orange-yellow. In the $ the ground-colour is more yellowish than in the type-form. South-East 
Rhodesia, Nyassaland, German and British East Africa. 
A. medea Cr. (54 d) is in my opinion best treated as an independent species. The light yellow marginal medea. 
spots on the underside of the forewing and the thick black submarginal line which bounds them proximally 
form quite a new feature, to which nothing in egina and its races corresponds. Both wings above at the base 
broadly black to vein 2 or 3, then as far as the sharply defined black marginal band, which is 4 to 5 mm. 
in breadth, yellow-red (^) or white ($) with very large discal dots, arranged quite as in egina; fore wing beneath 
reddish, at the base and in the $ also in the middle light yellow or whitish; hindwing beneath in the middle 
greenish light yellow or whitish, at the base and at the marginal band with brown-red or orange-yellow spots. 
Princes Island. 
A. niobe E. Sharpe is an interesting species, unfortunately, however, only known to me through the des- niobe. 
cription and figure. Eltringham considers its affinities quite uncertain; it seems to me to be most nearly 
allied to egina and medea. Only the is yet known. This has the ground-colour of both wings black-grey, 
darker at the margins and semi-transparent in the middle ; hindwing above with black marginal band 2 mm. 
in breadth; the black dots of the forewing are large and arranged as in egina except that those in cellules 4 to 6 
are placed much nearer to the apex, so that discal dots 2 to 4 stand in a straight line, as in Philo; the basal 
and discal dots of the hindwing are also very large and those in cellules 1 b to 5 stand in an almost straight 
line directed towards the apex; the formation of the marginal band of the hindwing beneath is not mentioned 
