10 
Preface. By Dr. A. Seitz. 
accessible, bear the character of steppes rather unfavourable to the development of an abundant lepidopteral 
fauna. There are mostly also smaller, rather inconspicuous lepidopteral forms that inhabit the steppe during 
the short time of blossoming. The characteristic lepidoptera of the Ethiopian Fauna are the Acraea and Teracolus 
among the Rhopalocera, smaller Noctuids from the group of the Erastrianae and light-coloured Arctiids among 
the Heterocera. Less conspicuous owing to their generally sitting very firmly during the day are the Lyman- 
triidae which surprise the natural philosopher In 7 their immense number of individuals. 
On comparing the impression made upon the observer by the total Ethiopian fauna with that in other 
parts of the world, one has the feeling that the struggle for existence, although it relentlessly calls for its victims 
in all districts rich in animals, is raving in Africa with particularly great ferocity and cruelty. Africa is the 
continent of the eternally chased game. Its soil is drenched with blood more than any other country. The 
frequently very scanty vegetation, compared with the continual enormous increase of game, forces a great 
number of the inhabitants to lead a predatory life. The number of carnivorous large animals and of insectivorous 
small animals seemed to me to be in Africa much greater than in the tropics of any other continent. The 
harmless animals hunted for can hardly conceal themselves in the mostly scanty vegetation. There are legions 
of birds, swarms of tachina-flies and predatory Hymenoptera, which are perpetually murdering about the air. 
But very few animals seem to be protected so far that they are not pounced upon by a swarm of bloodthirsty 
murderers the moment they appear in the world. And on the earth they are everywhere ambuscaded by 
insatiable reptiles; innumerable lizards prowl about the rubble-stones and nearly everywhere the soil is crammed 
with aggressive ants. 
The want of protection against the dangers that are unavoidable in the mostly open districts is so great 
that more intensely than anywhere else mimicry had to develop, i. e. the disguising of harmless and other 
unprotected creatures in the exterior of uneatable or valiant animals. The exterior of immune Danaids and 
Acraeids is copied there even by insect-genera which, as for instance the Pseudacraea , Aletis, Mimacraea, belong 
to groups that are not influenced by mimicry in the other parts of the world. But not only in the selection 
of its copyists, but also in their geographical adaptation to the models the Ethiopian insect-world has 
attained such a degree of perfection (as for instance in the female forms of Papilio dardamis) as is unequalled 
in any other faunal region. 
The total number of Ethiopian Heterocera known probably does not exceed much more than 10 to 
11 000. The Macrolepidoptera with about 8000 forms known can hardly be considered to be scantily explored; 
the Microlepidoptera are quite insufficiently known. There are about 1000 large and conspicuous lepidoptera, 
most of which belong to the Sphingidae, Saturniidae, Brahmaeidae, Eupterotidae, Lasiocampidae, and Agari- 
stidae ; a number of Arctiidae (Hypsinae ) and Noctuinae as well as single Lymantriidae are of middle size, whilst 
the rest are smaller inhabitants of the steppes or deserts from the families of Noctuulae, Zygaenidae, Syntomidae, 
Geometridae, and some other families. 
As to the colouring, the Heterocera flying during the day are also mostly sand-coloured, in as much as 
they inhabit the vast steppes and brushwoods. In the Hylaea, however, there occur also many decorative 
and glossy colours. In the same way as with the Rhopalocera some districts are enlivened by great numbers 
of Cliaraxes , Papilio , Amauris , and Euphaedra almost just as intensely as many districts of India and America, 
we also find with the Heterocera in various places great numbers of the magnificently coloured Agaristidae, 
metal-glossy Zygaenidae and Syntomidae , and large glaringly coloured Noctuulae, such as Miniodes, Anna, 
Heliophisma etc., so that even many districts of Africa, such as the Drakens Berge, Cameroon and Gabun, 
parts of Benguella and many districts on the coast of Upper Guinea exhibit a more conspicuous abundance 
and more intense chromatic effects than in the well-known abundant vegetations of Ceylon, Bangkok, Cam- 
bodja, or also some well-irrigated countries of America. In the whole of Central and South Africa, however, 
as well as on the coasts of the Red Sea, of the Somaliland and the South Atlantic coasts we come across 
an unmistakable predominance of small and insignificant lepidopteral forms, so that the macrolepidopteral 
fauna of many African steppe-countries does not make a more imposing impression than the microlepidopteral 
faunae of South America, Australia, or Japan do. 
In addition to this, there are, as we have already mentioned above for the Rhopalocera , rather few 
gigantic forms. We have stated that the Saturniidae are the only ones of all the Heterocera containing a greater 
number of imposing species found in the African Fauna, which will be mentioned yet later on. Among the 
Noctuulae there is only Palula macrops, being common to nearly all the warmer parts of the Old World, that 
exceeds the average middle size by its expanse of about 12 cm; the otherwise well represented Lymantriidae 
(about 500 forms) mostly exhibit a very modest size, and the greatest part of the Arctiidae are rather small, 
whilst the Lasiocampidae, of which 401 Ethiopian forms are known to-day, are stout and clumsy, but only 
in the $-forms of very few species exhibit a larger expanse of wings than some Pacliypasa, Taragama, Go- 
nometa, Philotherma do. 
In as much as the Ethiopian Heterocera are not fond of flying in the sunshine as the Agaristidae,Zygaenidae, 
the Chrysisidia, Aletis , Otroeda, Cartaletis, they seem to live very much in concealment. Even in long journeys 
through the grassy steppe there are generally very few Heterocera met with, even then when the plains are 
still alive with numbers of specimens of single Teracolus- and Acraea- species. But nowhere in the other world 
