THE AUSTRALIAN NATURALIST, 95 
3. Variation.—In Australia the variation of this species is 
not at all great, as compared with its forms in New Guinea 
and the Bismark Archipelago. In our form it is mainly in the 
direction of the New Guinea sub-species, wgeus ormenus. In 
the male this variation consists of the white area in some 
specimens just entering the cell of the hindwing, and on the 
underside the reduction in number and size of the red spots. 
However, the anal red spot above is always present, and usually 
to a very marked degree. 
In the female again the variation is all in the direction of 
the New Guinea form. Rothschild has pointed out that the 
only certain character to separate the females of P. xgeus and 
P. segeus ormenus is that in the female of the latter the white 
area of the hindwing is never connected to the costa by a white 
bar as in P. wgeus. Quite a number of specimens of P. xgeus 
from all parts of Hastern Australia are without this white bar 
on the upperside, while in a single specimen only from Cape 
York this bar on the underside is reduced to a thin line. But 
by far the most important variation is the rare light-coloured 
form from Cape York, which agrees with the form named 
amanga from New Guinea. This white form has been erron- 
eously recorded as P. ormenus, but differs from the white forms 
of that sub-species in exactly the same way as the ordinary 
forms do. Another most extraordinary aberration is that 
described by Mr. Olliff, and now in the Anstralian Museum. 
In this the red spots of the hindwing are very much lengthened. 
According to the only material to which I have access, namely, 
a figure of the larva of P. ormenus, that latter is considerably 
different from P. egeus. This larva is figured as being a dark 
green, with much longer dorsal spines than in our form, while 
the lateral stripe is black. I have also seen figures of the 
early stages of the related Solomon Island forms, woodfordi 
and bridget. The first, in both larval and pupal stages, presents 
many striking differences from our P «geus. The larva, ex- 
cepting a pair at either end, is devoid of fleshly dorsal spines, 
is an almost uniform green colour, and reminds one rather of 
the type of larva of P. sarpedon. The pupa appears from the 
figure to be smoother than in P. egeuws, and also its dorsal 
surface bent at a greater angle. In the case of P. bridged, the 
early stages here are much more like to those of Papilio egeus. 
At first sight the figure of the larva might be taken for a 
variety of P. zegeus. The pupa, however, is much smoother 
and as figured is of a much lighter colour. 
4, Distribution.—Considering for the moment all those closely 
related forms that have undoubtedly a common ancestry in 
the past ages, we find that the first species to be made known 
to science was P. gambristus from Amboina, in the Sonthern 
Moluccas, Here again the dissimilarity of the ‘sexes was the 
