The species is probably only a local race of the insect known to naturalists as M. polymnia, Linnæus, as Reakirt himself admits. The figure in the plate is from one of Reakirt's paratypes.
Genus CERATINIA, Fabricius
Butterfly.—Butterflies of medium size, very closely related in structure to the butterflies of the genus Mechanitis. The peculiarity of this genus, by which it may be distinguished from others belonging to this subfamily, is the fact that the lower discocellular vein in the hind wing of the male sex is strongly in angled, while in the genus Mechanitis it is the middle discocellular vein of the hind wing which is bent inwardly.
Early Stages.—Unknown for the most part.
There are at least fifty species belonging to this genus found in the tropical regions of America; only one is said to occur occasionally within the limits of the region covered by this volume.
[a]Fig. 81.]—Neuration of the genus Ceratinia. (For explanation of lettering, see Fig. 40.)
(1) Ceratinia lycaste, Fabricius, Plate VIII, Fig. 3, ♂ (Lycaste).
Butterfly.—The butterfly is rather small, wings semi-transparent, especially at the apex of the fore wings. The ground-color is pale reddish-orange, with the border black. There are a few irregular black spots on the discal area of the fore wings, and a row of minute white spots on the outer border. There is a black band on the middle of the hind wings, curved to correspond somewhat with the outline of the outer border. The markings on the under side are paler. The variety negreta, which is represented in the plate, has a small black spot at the end of the cell of the hind wings, replacing the black band in the form common upon the Isthmus of Panama.