13 
INTRODUCTION 
Four main veins arise from the base of the wing and are called the SUBMEDTAN the ^MEDIAN 
the SUBCOSTAL and the COSTAL. The SUBMEDIAN we call vein la; of the four it is the nearest 
to the hindwing, and it reaches the termen just above the tornus; it is never branched, but in some 
groups of butterflies it is forked at the base. Tlie ^lEDTAN vein forms the lower margin of the 
cell and has three branches, vein 2, vein 3 and vein 4, all of which reach the termen. The SUBCOSTAL 
vein forms the upper margin of the cell and has sometimes as many as five branches, veins 7, 8, 9, 10 
and n, but only in the Ilesperidae do these branches ax-ise separately; in the other families vein 8 
and vein 9 (and sometimes vein 10) are fused at their bases with vein 7 from which vein they emerge 
some distance beyond the cell: in the Pieritlae and in most of the LijcaenidaCf vein 8 has advanced 
so far along vein 7 as to disappear altogether, and in some of the Pieridae and Lycaenidae vein 9 
has been los| in the same way. The COSTAL A^ein is called vein 12: it is never branched, always 
ends on the costa, and is often fused for some part of its length with vein 11. The cell is usually 
closed by two or three short and Aveak veins called the discoccllulars; these connect the end of the sub¬ 
costal AA'ith the end of the median, and from them vein 5 and usually Amin G extends to the termen. In 
the Papilionidae a short extra fx’cc A*ein reaches from base to dorsum, and a short cross Amin near 
base connects vein la Avith the median Amin. 
The small Aving axmas we number according to the Amin immediately beloAv each: thus area la 
is bounded I)y vein la, a portion of the median, vein 2 and the termen: area 5 is bounded by Amin 5, 
one of the discocellular Amins, Amin G and the termen. Whore a vein has been lost the corxmsponding 
area is treated as lost: thus in most of the Lycaenidae the missing \min 8 causes axma 7 to be bounded 
by vein 7, vein 9 and the costa or apex. In the Pa2vlionidae Avitli the extra short Amin lb, area lb is 
betAveen Amin lb and \min la, and axma le is betAveen Amin lb and the dox’snm: in the other families 
Avitli Amin lb absent, area lb is between vein la and the dox’sum. 
The hindAving is of more irregular shape than the forowing but the terms used in describing 
it are the same. It has the front margin or COSTA, the outer margin or TERMEN and the inner 
mai'gin or DORSUiM (sometimes called the abdominal mai’gin). The angles between these margins 
aim the APEX at the junction of the costa and tlie tex-men, and the TORNUS or anal angle at the 
junction of the termen and the dorsum: the subapieal, subtei’minal, discal and other aimas are as 
in the forewing. In the foimwnig many of the Amins are concentrated near the costa gmng that 
margin of the Aving a needed special strength, but in the hindAving they are moim eAmnly distx’ibuted. 
The ST^^BMEDIAN (vein la) is not branched and reaches the tornus: except in the Papilionidae, a 
shorter unbranched Amin rises fi*om the base and ends on the dox’sum; this Ave call Amin lb. The 
^MEDIAN Amin forms the loAvcr mai’gin of the cell and has three branches, Amin 2, \min 3 and Amin 4, 
all of Avliich reach the termen. The SUBCOSTAL Amin foiuns the upper margin of the cell and 
(unlike that of the foreAving) has only tAvo branches, Amin G and Amin 7. The cell is usually enclosed and 
tlie end of the subcostal connected AA’ith the end of the median by Aveak discocellular Amins fi’om which 
Amin 5 reaches to the termen; in the Ilesperidae this short Amin is only I’arely developed. The COSTAL 
Amin is called Amin 8; it is fused for a short distance from its base AA'ith the subcostal, is ncAmr 
branched, and reaches the costa near the apex: from near its base there often emerges a short spur 
called the precostal A'ein, and in the Papilionidae a shoi’t cross Amin connects the pimcostal spur AA'ith 
the costal A’ein and encloses a small pi-ecostal cell. Tho small Aving areas take the number of the vein 
immediately heloAv each, as in tho foimAving. 
Our plan of omitting vein 1 and numbering the submedian of both Avings A’ein la, enables the 
corimsponding A'eins and areas of both Avings to be numbei’ed by the same figures. 
The introduction of our suliject having been accomplished, Ave proceed to the main purpose of 
our book, Avhich is the desci’iption the illustration and the classification of all the knoAvn butterflies 
of Australia. 
