Boros István (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 5. (Budapest 1954)

Issekutz, L. ; Kovács, L.: Melitaea britomartis Assmann, with special regard to its occurrence in Hungary

The numerically expressable characteristics of the uncus and the processus posteriors are tabulated. Since we have found no data with regard to the measurements of the uncus and processus posterior in literature, and, as we had only a meagre material from abroad at our disposal, we were unable at the present to try and give a general picture of the distribution of above characteristics. The narrow and pointed uncus occurs in one place only in Hungary, in the southernmost population. This uncus type is probably rare, for Verity ought to have paid attention to a deviation of this dimensions, mentioning it if occurring regularly. The variation of the measurements and shapes of processus posterior show a rather disturbed picture. The slender processus posterior in Hungary occurs in a somewhat eastern area as a constant populational character. Two other places, more far east, are Borosjenő and Sliven, where it occurs mixed in the one and probably exclusively in the other. On the other hand, the Hochschwab data seems to indicate that this form of the processus posterior is to be met with also westwards of Hungary. All in all, it would be a profitable task to look further into the characteristics of the male copulatory organs based on a material richer than ours. Systematical part. Now, as far as the external characters of the Hungarian britomartis are concerned, we have already mentioned them above. We have stated that the specimens of the Central Mountains could be separated with complete precision from parthenie only by taking into consideration the genital armature, while the Kaposvár specimens were generally held by the local collectors to be diamina. These facts shed light not only on the fact that our britomartis is not an uniform insect as regards its external characters but that the most important ones of the external features appear also locally to be well demarcated-. We have already touched upon, how, with respect to athalia, the three members of the athalia-group can be distinguished. It remains now to extend this to the differences of britomartis and parthenie. Literature gives some of the differentiating characters. Such are: 1. Differences in the color of the labial palpi (the hairs toward the tip are russet in parthenie, black in britomartis), 2. the brown ground of parthenie is toned to yellow russet in britomartis; 3. the underside of the hindwing is more mottled in britomartis than in parthenie, resembling diamina, 4. the spots of the first row on the forewings are approximately of the same size in britomartis, 5. on the ventral side of the abdomen, the black lines are disconnected in parthenie but united into continuous streaks, in britomartis. — Authorities agree, however, also in the fact that these features are not constant, with exceptions popping up all the time. We should like to add another character to the above ones, not met with in literature, yet which holds good for 90 percent of the Hungarian specimens. This character is to be seen on the underside of the forewings, observable in the shape and ratio of the spots intruding inwards from the margin. Among these, we have found some differences in the shape of the spots 4 and 5, and their ratio to spot 6, counted all from the apex. In parthenie spots 4 and 5 are rounder, 5 being longer than 4. Consequently spots 4, 5, б gradually increase in size like the pipes of an organ. Spots 4 and 5 of britomartis are equal, generally very small, spot 6 extending far towards the base of the wing. Spots 4 and 5 of britomartis end in a small