Boros István (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 2. (Budapest 1952)

Issekutz, L.: Parnassius apollo (L.) in the Carpathians

I can complete this description on ground of the very rich material of our Museum of Natural History, collected in the valley of Liptovsky Sv. Jan (Liptószentiván), al also on the very rich Jeszenye material, as follows : Liptauensis is a medium sized Carpathian apollo. The rounded forewing and the strongly sooted female give the appereance of a smaller carpathicus. The butterfly is, however, not so yellowish, and the black blotches are smaller, generally speaking. The male has conspicuous but small costal blotches, the upper being especially small and dot-like, sometimes even totally extinct (forma trimacula S с h a w e r d a). The eyespots on the hindwing are also remarkably small, with a very thin frame, frequently without the white dot. Anal spots exceedingly tiny, and often, especially the upper one, absent. Females are very sooty (those from the southern slopes of the Alacsony-Tátra). The black frames of the eyespots on the hindwing are broad, the margin of the wing is sooty, the submarginal band well developed, mostly distinct. 3. subsp. nitriensis subsp. nova. Coming from Hronska Breznica (Breznóbánya) along the river Hron (Garam) we find apollo again around Kremnica (Körmöcbánya), Vihnye and Nova Bana (Újbánya). The form which flies here is bigger, the yellow colour milder, whiter, the apex longer. This apollo represents a transitus to another subspecies, i. e. to the apollo of the Mts. Nitra (Nyitra) belonging already to the big form of the Carpathian apollo. Male 41—44 mm, female 43—46 mm. Heavily scaled, of a very rich, mild yellow. Forewings lengthened, narrower than those of carpathicus (apex pointed). Hyaline margin of male begins broad, narrows down at R

4, tending henceforth in uniform breadth to Cu

x. Subcostal band broad, consisting of lunula spots with blurred margins, sometimes totally absent between Mj and M

2, curving from JVi

2 on tovards base, scarcely reaching Cu

r White scales on hyaline margin cover veins even on termen. Subcostal blotches small. Cell spots medium. Outer one scarcely tending towards costa beyond cell. Dorsal spot medium sized, eggshaped. Costa and base very poorly darkened, yellowish in colour. Eyespots on hindwing medium, middle one often egg-shaped. Colour : mahaleb-red. Middle eyespot distinctly, the costal one sometimes, white-dotted. Black frame of eyespots thin, around the central-one frequently disconnected. Anal spots small, mostly lineally designed, the upper sometimes absent, undersides usually ornamented with red. Dorsum frequently sooty. Submarginal band usually absent, if existing, not more than traces. Hyaline margin of female usually reaching A

xi on forewing, shape same as the males only broader. Subcostal band with blurred and indiscriminate edges, reaching Cu

2. Lunula spots distinct only between R

5 and M

3, sinuate from M

2 towards base. White scales cover veins on hyaline margin also in female. Subcostal and cell spots relatively small, not reaching costa. Dorsal spot circular. Forewing scarcely sooty. Eyespots on hindwing medium, mahaleb-red. Black frame of middle eyespot of medium breadth, white dot very distinct. Black frame of costal eyespot thin, eyespot weakly dotted. Anal spots relatively small, their, red colour of the unterside shines usually through (forma excelsior H. S t i с к). Dorsum scarcely sooty, submarginal band indistinct. • As visible also from this description, the Nyitra apollo is sexually the least digryph among all Carpathian races. A. Kertész knew only about males from Vihnye, but already observed the tiny form of the small anal spots and the whitish scaled veins on the hyaline margin of the forewing. As he had no females at his disposal he refrained from going further into the matter. In the collection of my friend Dr. L. Kovács, there are 8 males and 4 females from the environs of the village Szkiczó, Mts. Nyitra, collected by his late father, Dr. L. Kovács sr. These animals show the characters more explicitly which A. Kertész already had observed regarding the Vihnye specimens. The light colour of the females is so striking and so characteristic for this form and 135