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Show 1893.] ME. E. Y. WATSON ON THE HESPEEIIDJE. 7 whatever. Mr. de Niceville also informs me that though he would attach more importance to the male-marks in Hesperiidse and Lycsenidse than in other families, yet he considers that each case must be judged on its merits. While referring to this subject, it seems worth calling attention to the very few Old World genera which are provided with a costal fold on the fore wing, those provided with a discal streak or other character largely predominating, while in the N e w World the numbers of each group seem fairly equal. The characters which have been found of the greatest value in dividing the family into groups or subfamilies are (the Pyrrhopyyince being first excluded on their abnormal antennae) firstly the position of vein 5 of the fore wing, taken in conjunction with the length of the cell, this vein in the Hesperiince being invariably nearer to G than to 4 when the cell of the fore wing is less than two-thirds the length of costa, and only nearer to 4 when the cell is more than two-thirds the length of costa; while in the Pamphilince vein 5 of the fore wing is never nearer to 6 than to 4 except in a few aberrant Australian genera, and usually is very much nearer to 4, in a few cases only being practically equidistant between the two veins, while on the other hand the cell of the fore wing never exceeds two-thirds of the length of the costa, except in one or two Asiatic genera of the Ismene group, which are readily distinguished from all Hesperiince by their peculiar palpi and antennae. The presence or absence of vein 5 of the hind wing has been found of no importance as a character for groups of genera, as it occurs in all stages of development in closely allied genera ; it has, therefore, only been treated as present when it has been fully developed into a tubular vein, and in all other cases has been treated as absent, though it is usually just traceable as a fold or weak vein, being only absolutely invisible in some genera of Pamphilince, chiefly those in which vein 5 of the fore wing is very close to the bottom of the cell. It is noteworthy that there is no genus of Pamphilince or the Hesperiince occurring in the N e w World in which vein 5 of the hind wing is fully developed into a tubular vein, the only N e w World genera iu which this vein is developed being the Pyrrhopygine genera Amenis and Ardaris, the former of which would appear to be in a transitional state, the development of the vein varying individually in the same species. The presence or absence of the tibial epiphysis on the fore legs has only been found of secondary importance, varying in some cases in different species of the same genus, and apparently being present or entirely wanting in different individuals of Abantis letlensis, Hopff. O n the hind tibia? both terminal and medial pairs of spurs are almost invariably present, and the absence of the middle pair is usually of generic importance, though in the genera Cyclopides, Heteropterus, and Pythonides the absence of this pair of spurs is only of specific value. Another character of the greatest importance is the position |