Page:The naturalist on the River Amazons 1863 v1.djvu/283

 ward to Pará and westward to Peru, it is entirely absent. This absence at first appeared to me very strange; for the local conditions of these regions did not appear so strongly contrasted as to check, in this abrupt manner, the range of so prolific a species; especially as at Obydos and Santarem it occurred in moist woods close to the edge of the river. Another and nearly allied species, however, takes its place in the forest plains; namely, the H. Thelxiope of Hübner. It is of the same size and shape as its sister kind, but differs very strikingly in colours: H. Melpomene being simply black with a large crimson spot on its wings, whilst H. Thelxiope has these beautifully rayed with black and crimson, and is further adorned with a number of bright yellow spots. Both have the same habits. H. Melpomene ornaments the

sandy alleys in the forests of Obydos, floating lazily in great numbers over the lower trees; whilst H. Thelxiope, in a similar manner and in equal numbers, adorns the moister forests which constitute its domain. No one