BRITISH
BUTTERFLIES

mivsRsmr OP

- »l NIA

3AN DIEGO

PEEPS AT NATURE

EDITED BY

THE RBV. CHARLES A. HALL

V. BRITISH BUTTERFLIES

IN THE SAME SERIES

EACH CONTAINING l6 FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
(EIGHT OF WHICH ARE IN COLOUR)

LARGE CROWN 8vo. PICTURE COVBR

BIRD LIFE OF THE SEASONS
COMMON BRITISH BEETLES
BRITISH MOTHS
WILD FLOWERS AND THEIR

WONDERFUL WAYS
BRITISH LAND MAMMALS
BRITISH FERNS, CLUB-MOSSES, &c.
NATURAL HISTORY OF THE

GARDEN

ROMANCE OF THE ROCKS
THE NATURALIST AT THE

SEA-SHORE
POND LIFE
REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS

PUBLISHED BY
C. BLACK, LTD., 4, 5 AND 6, SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W.

AGENTS

.... THE MACMILLAN COMFANY

<« Jk «6 FIFTH AVXNUB, NEW YORK

ACITXALJ.8IA . . . OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

•OS FLINDERS LAN*, MELBOURNE
.... THE MACMILLAN COMPANY OF CANADA. LTD.

ST. MARTIN'S HOUSE, 70 BOND STREET, TORONTO
.... MACMILLAN It COMPANY, LTD.
MACMILLAN BUILDING, BOMBAY
•»r Bow BAZAAH STXRBT, CALCUTTA

PLATE 1.

1. Swallow Tail

2. Black-veined White

3. Large Garden White (Female)

4. Small Garden White (Male)

5. Green-veined White (Fe

6. Bath White (Male)

7. Orange Tip

8 Wood White (Male)
9. Pale Clouded Yellow

BRITISH
BUTTERFLIES

A. M.(^STEWART

CONTAINING 16 ILLUSTRATIONS, FIGURING
ALL THE SPECIES, viz. :

A. & C. BLACK, LTD.

4, 5 Sc 6 SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W. i

1918

First published May, 1912

INTRODUCTORY EDITORIAL NOTE

I TAKE it that this little " Peep at Nature," needs
no apology ; the exquisite coloured plates, produced
direct from natural butterflies by the three-colour pro-
cess, are a sufficient justification of its appearance.

The author is a practical entomologist of many years'
standing. He writes from the fulness of a rich experi-
ence in the fields. He justly advocates the " Paisley "
method of setting insects. I know it to be the more
expeditious, and less calculated to damage specimens,
than the ordinary process. His notes on the preserva-
tion of larvae will be welcome in many quarters.

The publishers desire me to express their indebted-
ness to Messrs. Watkins and Doncaster, 36, Strand,
W.C., for kindly arranging and lending the specimens
from which the coloured plates have been produced.

CHARLES A. HALL.

CONTENTS

CHAPTKX

INTRODUCTORY EDITORIAL NOTE

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS -

I. THE LIFE-HISTORY OF A BUTTERFLY I

II. THE CAPTURE AND PRESERVATION OF BUTTERFLIES - 13
III. THE BRITISH BUTTERFLIES DESCRIBED - - - 29

INDEX

88

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PLATE

I. SWALLOW - TAIL BLACK - VEINED WHITE LARGE

GARDEN WHITE — SMALL GARDEN WHITE GREEN-
VEINED WHITE BATH WHITE ORANGE-TIP

WOOD WHITE PALE CLOUDED YELLOW* - Frontispiece

FACING FACE

II. METHOD OF SETTING WITH BRISTLE AND BRACES - 9

III. "COP" OF I2O*S COTTON ON STAND, AND SETTING-
NEEDLE FOR "PAISLEY" METHOD OF SETTING - 16

IV. CLOUDED YELLOW BRIMSTONE SILVER - WASHED

FRITILLARY, ETC.* ------ 25

V. GLANVILLE FRITILLARY HEATH FRITILLARY, ETC.* - 32

vi. "PAISLEY" METHOD OF SETTING - - - - 35

VII. APPARATUS FOR PRESERVING LARV.B - - -38

VIII. RED ADMIRAL PAINTED LADY MILK-WEED, ETC.* 41

IX. MARBLED WHITE — MOUNTAIN RINGLET SCOTCH

ARGUS, ETC.* 48

X. DARK GREEN FRITILLARY HIGH BROWN FRITILLARY,

ETC. 51

XI. LARVA OF LARGE GARDEN WHITE — PUPA OF LARGE

GARDEN WHITE, ETC 54

List of Illustrations

PLATB FACING PACK

XII. SMALL HEATH — GREEN HAIRSTREAK — PURPLE HAIR-

STREAK, ETC.*

XIII. ADONIS BLUE - CHALK -HILL BLUE - LITTLE BLUE,

ETC.* ........ 64

XIV. PUPA OF RED ADMIRAL - LARVA OF RED ADMIRAL,

ETC- ........ 73

XV. BROWN ARGUS - AZURE BLUE - SILVER-STUDDED BLUE,

ETC. ........ 80

XVI. LIFE-HISTORY OF SMALL TORTOISESHELL BUTTERFLY t
OVA - LARVAE - PUPA — MALE INSECT (TO RIGHT)

— FEMALE (LEFT) — FOOD-PLANT (NETTLE)* On tb* co-vtr

* These eight illustrations are in colour ; the others are in black and
white.

BRITISH BUTTERFLIES

CHAPTER I

THE LIFE-HISTORY OF A BUTTERFLY

WHAT is the difference between a butterfly and a moth,
and how am I to distinguish between them ? is a
question very often put to the student of insect life —
the entomologist.

Butterflies and moths both belong to the Natural
Order, Lepidoptera, or scale-winged insects. Butterflies
may be distinguished as day flyers, and the moths fly
by night. The main physical difference between them
appears in the forms of the antennae, or horns ; in the
butterflies these organs are club-shaped at the extreme
ends. But the antennas of the various species do not
all follow a common pattern. In some the knob is
abrupt and much smaller, after the manner of a drum-
stick ; in others, the thickening commences well down
the shaft, and is gradually increased until it very much
resembles an Indian club. The antennas of the moths,
on the other hand, show much diversity of form, and
in a great many species they are totally different in the
male and female. A very common and beautiful form

B.B. I

The Life-History of a Butterfly

is the feathered, or comblike, antenna ; another is long
and threadlike, and some show a combination of these
two forms ; others, again, seem to be striving after the
butterfly type, and approach the club shape. It should
be noted that not a few moths fly during the day, but
it is rare, exceedingly rare, to find a butterfly abroad
after sundown. With a little practice in observation,
the novice soon learns to distinguish between the two.

The stages of development of butterflies and moths
are practically the same : first the egg ; next the cater-
pillar, or larva ; then the pupa, or chrysalis ; and, lastly,
the imago, or perfect insect.

The eggs of the Lepidoptera are surpassingly beauti-
ful. Are they like birds' eggs ? Not at all I In the
first place they are too minute for comparison with the
larger product of the birds ; both in colour and form
they more nearly resemble small shells or pearls, as a
great many of them are beautifully opalescent, especially
when empty. A good hand-lens will reveal a great
deal of their beauty, but the low power of an ordinary
compound microscope will be necessary to enable you
to see all the nice detail of pattern sculptured on their
surfaces. Each species of butterfly, or moth, produces
eggs of particular shape and ornamentation, so it is
quite possible, in most cases, to say to which species
an egg belongs. How long the egg may remain un-
hatched depends a good deal upon which butterfly's
egg it is, the season of the year, and the temperature.
Not many butterflies pass the winter in this country in
the egg state, that season being usually passed either as
2

The Caterpillar

a half-fed hibernating caterpillar, or as a chrysalis ;
and in a few cases it is only the female which passes
the winter in some secure retreat, to emerge again in
the spring, and then deposit her eggs on the fresh-
growing verdure. But, generally speaking, eggs kid
during the summer hatch out in from ten to sixteen
days. And it is well to be on the lookout for the
young larvae even earlier, if you intend to rear some
species in confinement. If you have secured eggs to
rear from, watch them from day to day to see if they
darken, as they often assume a dark leaden hue im-
mediately before hatching. This is a useful warning,
and serves as a hint to have plenty of fresh food ready
for the young family about to arrive.

The caterpillars are ravenous eaters ; you will not
notice this fact particularly at first, because they are
then such tiny creatures, but in proportion to their size
their eating capacity is enormous. They grow at an
exceedingly rapid rate and to such an extent that they
literally burst their skins ! In a very short time — three
or four days — the old skin bursts and out comes
Mr. Caterpillar with a brand-new one. And this is
the manner of their growth ; several times (five or six)
this skin-shedding process is repeated. And then the
creature prepares for the last and final change before
turning into a butterfly.

There are one or two more points I would ask you
to notice about our caterpillar ere we pass on to con-
sider his next stage. The legs are generally sixteen in
number. There are six true legs, one pair on each of
3

The Life-History of a Butterfly

the first three body-segments behind the head ; four
more pairs near the anal end, and the last segment
carries another pair, known as the " anal claspers." The
first six may be said to represent the same legs in the
perfect insect. Note also the breathing holes, or
spiracles, placed in a row along either side of the larva.
The head seems to carry very large eyes, but it does not
really do so ; the real eyes are very minute, and it
requires a good strong pocket-lens to make them out.
There are twelve of them all told, and they are not all
of equal size. There are six on either side of the
mouth, and the three larger ones on each side are not
very difficult to find. The mouth is furnished with
strong mandibles for biting and chewing food, and also
contains the spinneret for the production of the silk
used on various occasions. All these details should be
carefully noted — the head, the eyes, the breathing
spiracles, the mandibles, the fore-legs and claws, and
the hind- or pro-legs. Mark the totally different types
of feet which terminate these two sets of legs. You
will need to use your lens for this observation, and to
enable you to see the beautiful structure of the pro-leg
foot, it will be necessary for you to examine it through
a compound microscope. It is well for the young
entomologist to know these more prominent features of
a caterpillar's economy, if for no other reason than to
be able to answer the questions that are sure to be put
to him on these and many other points.

But only a small percentage of the larvae that are
born into the world live to become butterflies ; some
4

Ichneumon Flies

seasons a larger number than usual may escape, and
then we have a butterfly year, but the relentless
ichneumon flies soon restore the balance. They, too,
have their young to provide for, and a strange mode
of existence they have. Once you get to know these
ichneumons at sight, you will be astonished at the
number of them. All the summer through you will
find them hawking about the trees, bushes, nettles, and
heather, and, indeed, wherever larvae are to be found,
there, too, you will find these flies. There are many
species of them. Once a female has discovered a larva
its doom is sealed. The ordinary larva has very few
defensive weapons ; he may wriggle and squirm and
look terrifying, but all the same the ichneumon sets
about her task of placing one or two, and in many cases
a dozen or two, of her eggs either upon or under his
skin. These eggs soon hatch, and the little white
maggots pass their existence inside the doomed creature,
eating all the tissues away, at first avoiding the vital
organs, which they leave until the last. When they
have reached their allotted span, and are about to change
to the pupa state themselves, they soon finish off their
victim, and all that remains of what might have been a
brilliant butterfly is a little shrivelled bit of skin and a
host of little — or it may be a few big — black, brown,
or grey flies. Sentiment apart, these parasitic flies are
extremely useful. When you consider the large number
of eggs laid by a single female butterfly or moth — from
two to six hundred is a fair average — you will realize
that if this enormous progeny were to survive and go
5

The Life-History of a Butterfly

on increasing without any check, the vegetation of the
world would very soon prove quite inadequate to support
the vast army of caterpillars, to say nothing of you and
me.

You may at some time find a dozen or two larvae of
some particular species of butterfly or moth, and at the
time of collecting them they may seem healthy and
all right, but weeks afterwards you may discover that
only a very small number will change to chrysalids, the
ichneumons having had the rest. If you can catch and
induce a female butterfly to give you a batch of eggs
in captivity, then you may be sure, providing your
treatment of them has been right, that all your brood
will arrive at the perfect state.

The next stage we have to consider we will pass over
briefly. The change from the larva to the chrysalis is
always a very fascinating performance to watch, not
that one could sit and see the whole performance right
through from start to finish, the time occupied is too
long for that. Generally the process lasts a day or two,
but by watching at frequent intervals, where several
individuals are engaged at the same operation and each
at its own stage of the work, it is not difficult to follow
the whole process of the transformation. Try it with
the larva of the Large Garden White butterfly, perhaps
the commonest, and therefore the easiest to procure ;
you will gather plenty of "stung" or " ichneumoned "
examples, but still a sufficient number should be clean
to serve your purpose.

We will not enter into all the details of the "spinning-
6

The Chrysalis

up " process and describe how an attachment is secured
at the anal extremity, and how our little friend " loops
the loop." Some species, such as the Tortoiseshell, get
over this part of their difficulty by omitting the loop
altogether, and therefore hang head downward, sus-
pended only by the hooks and silk at the tail. Con-
cealment during this stage is the creature's only hope
and chance of survival ; other defence they have none.
Their colour may occasionally protect them by virtue
of making them harmonize beautifully with their sur-
roundings. The ichneumons seldom molest them
during the chrysalis stage ; but birds and small animals
have sharp eyes when foraging for food, so it is usually
far more difficult to discover these chrysalids than to
find the fcoding caterpillars.

The time passed as a chrysalis is very variable ; ten
days to a fortnight in summer is sufficient for many
species ; others pass over the whole winter, like the
spring brood of our common white butterflies, so that
these can be sought for during the winter months under
the overhanging portion of palings, walls, outhouses,
and in similar situations. The cold does not seem to
injure them ; it may, and generally does, retard their
emergence, and possibly has some effect on the colours
of the wings, but it cannot change their ultimate pattern.
Experiments have been tried with various chrysalids,
part of a brood being hatched out after being submitted
to a very low temperature, and another part of the
same brood after being treated with a high temperature.
Speaking generally, the coloration of those subjected
7

The Life-History of a Butterfly

to the cold treatment was brightened and intensified,
and Nature does the same thing in her own way. The
early summer butterflies, which pass through the winter
as chrysalids, are almost invariably larger and brighter
than the midsummer or autumn brood of the same
species.

But suppose our caterpillar to have successfully run
the gauntlet — ichneumon, bird, beast, and beetle — and
to have become a healthy pupa, and that the time has
arrived when he must make the last and greatest trans-
formation in his short and interesting career. Several
days prior to his exit as a butterfly taking place, a
noticeable change occurs in the apparent colour of the
chrysalis.

As a matter of fact it is not the chrysalis shell which
is changing colour, but the developing insect, the colours
of which are beginning to show through it, at first
rather faintly ; but latterly the pattern of the wings can
be distinctly seen, and the whole body surface gets
darker. When this stage is reached, the advent of our
butterfly is not long delayed. The hour chosen is
usually early in the morning, so that by the time the
sun is high and the fresh perfumed flowers are nodding
in the breeze, our little butterfly has expanded and dried
his wings, and is now quite prepared for the beautiful
and consummating act in the wonderful drama of his
existence.

While he is drying his wings and preparing for a life
amongst sunshine and flowers, we might spend a few
minutes with him ere he leaves us, and the more so, as

PLATE 2

Method cf Setting with Bristle and Braces

The Perfect Insect

now he looks his very best, arrayed in all his new-
found finery. Such wings ! no wonder he looks proud
as he slowly opens and closes them, repeating this
action over and over again as if to prove their smooth
working before he launches forth upon the air.

And the wonderful pattern of these wings is all built
up of tiny scales placed as regularly as the slates on a
roof. Your pocket-lens will show you much of this,
but to examine the individual scales, their various shapes
and structure, you will require a compound microscope.
These scales are the "dust'* you will find on your
finger and thumb if ever you pick up a butterfly in such
an unscientific manner. You will notice, too, that the
under sides of the wings bear quite a different design
from the upper sides ; this is nearly always the case,
and in many foreign butterflies this difference between
the two sides is so very remarkable as to be quite
startling in its effect. Well I remember an old sergeant-
major, who had spent many years in India, and had done
a lot of " butterfly dodging " in his day, telling me of
this wonderful effect. He said one would come upon
an open piece of meadow-land blazing with flowers and
butterflies, but, on being disturbed, the whole crowd of
insects would rise in the air, and then, he would say, they
looked like a different set altogether. When you
capture a few specimens of any species, examine closely
the under sides, and in any case, if you wish to preserve
them, always set one of each sex with the under side
uppermost.

Next to the wings the head claims our attention ; it
B.B. 9 2

The Life-History of a Butterfly

supports three very essential organs — the eyes, the
horns, or antennas, and the tongue, or sucker.

The antennae are undoubtedly the organs of smell,
which is perhaps the most highly developed sense in
the Insect World. That the eyes are a marvel of beauty,
and that the tongue is a finely finished little instrument
for its work no one can question ; but the sense of
smell has a much longer range than even the eye, with
all its facets. And you will generally find, in relation
to the faculty which any animal or insect has to exert
most so as to procure its food and propagate its kind,
the organ of that faculty reaches the highest point of
development and service.

The eyes of the condor and the gannet must
be marvellous in range and penetrating power. I
have watched scores of the latter birds sailing and
hovering 150 feet and more above a troubled sea.
Suddenly there would be a slight pause, and then a
rocket-like dive right down into the waves below. To
see a fish on the surface from such a height would be
a great feat, but to see and catch one a dozen feet
deep in a broken sea as a gannet can do, is wonderful
indeed.

With butterfly and moth the sense of smell is of the
greatest importance. Their vision is good, but short
in range ; so to find the flowers wherein lies their food
the sight is good, but the power to detect them by
scent must be far better. " Over the hedge is a garden
fair," and if a butterfly cannot see through the hedge,
he can at least smell through it. He could fly over it ?
10

The Sense of Smell

Yes, but if his sense of smell says there is nothing there
for him, you see he is saved the time and trouble ; and
his life is short.

" Assembling " and "treacling" for moths are two
methods employed by insect-hunters to secure an abun-
dance of specimens otherwise difficult to obtain, and in
both cases it is this same wonderful sense of smell
which is the insect's undoing.

For " assembling," a captive virgin female is taken
at dusk to the locality where the species is likely to
occur, and if males are about they very soon make
their appearance. The female being in a gauze-covered
box, they will swarm over it in their efforts to find an
entrance, and when thus engaged can be easily captured.
As for the subtle odour emitted by the lady, you or I
could never detect it, yet these moths come swarming
from far and near. I once witnessed a curious phase
of this instinct on a hillside in Arran. My attention
was arrested by a number of males of Bombyx Quercus
(variety, Callun<e\ keeping near and flying over a
certain spot, and, thinking a female might be about, I
went over to investigate. It was a female, but a dead
and crushed one ; how it had met its end I could only
conjecture ; but evidently, although the insect was
mutilated, the scent still lingered, and brought the males
circling round. This large moth flies boldly during
the day, and in Arran the larvae feed on the heather.

The eyes of a butterfly are large and of the usual
insect pattern — i.e., compound, being made up of a
number of tiny lenses, hexagonal in shape, like the
II

The Life- History of a Butterfly

honeycomb of the domestic bee. Roughly, about three
thousand of these lenses go to make up the two eyes.
As pointed out, their range of vision is comparatively
short, but within their range vision must be very keen
— before, behind, above, and below. I once saw a
sparrow try to capture a Large Garden White in a street
in the town ; he darted at it again and again, much in
the manner of the ordinary spotted flycatcher, but the
butterfly seemed to have no difficulty in evading him,
and eventually he gave up the game.

A small portion of the eye makes a good slide for
the microscope, but the individual lenses are hardly
visible through an ordinary hand-glass. On the top of
the head are one or two small simple eyes, which do not
look as if they could be of much service, but one never
knows, and the butterflies will not tell, although they
have long tongues.

The tongue is a very pretty structure ; when not in
use it lies coiled up in spiral fashion like a watch-spring,
and is then well protected by two little side-covers
called the " palpi." Needless to say, the tongue cannot
sting. No moth or butterfly has a stinging organ ;
the tongue is too delicate for any " cut and thrust "
work. It is not difficult to mount a butterfly's tongue
for the microscope, and its examination well repays the
trouble. Particularly noticeable under the microscope
are the little bell-shaped suckers placed in long rows
near the tip. If you wish to make and examine a
cross section, take the head of a freshly killed specimen
and extend the tongue in a little melted paraffin wax ;

12

Capture and Preservation

when this is thoroughly set, cut it across in very thin
slices with a sharp razor ; place one on a glass slide,
then on to the microscope stage, and there you are!
You will soon discover that the simple-looking tube is
a very complicated affair, and quite a little study in
itself.

We will not linger over what remains of the anatomy
of our butterfly. The legs are six in number, but
occasionally the first pair are useless for walking, and
only the middle and last pairs are fully developed.
Always remember the maximum number of legs for all
insects is six. Caterpillars may have more or less ;
they occur as footless grubs with no legs at all, while
some have as many as sixteen legs.

The last, or abdominal, section of a butterfly's body
carries the sexual organs ; it is usually more slender in
the males than in the females.

CHAPTER II

THE CAPTURE AND PRESERVATION OF BUTTERFLIES

IN the rearing of butterflies from eggs and in watching
them all through their larval stages, we learn a great
deal concerning their life and habits, and finally secure
perfect specimens for the cabinet. But the glories of
the chase and the charm of the country ramble weigh
more in the balance with the naturalist, and the story
of a captured specimen is often far more interesting
than the record of a bred one.
13

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

Of butterfly nets used in the chase there are many
and varied patterns in the market. I made my own
and a better balanced one it would be hard to find.
Having seen and handled a few in my time, my ex-
perience has been that they are mostly too heavy, have
too many loose parts, and their weight is badly dis-
tributed. Indeed, I saw one lately which felt more like
a hammer in one's hand. I think if you try to get one
made after the pattern here described and figured on
p. 15, you will not be disappointed with it.

Now, it is one of the avowed purposes of this little
book to make the study and collecting of butterflies
cost all the time a boy can spare, and little, or, at least,
not much in money. The requirements for a ring
folding net are 2 yards of steel wire, rather less than
•j- inch in thickness (cost about threepence) ; three
copper rivets and washers, ^ inch by f inch long
(cost one penny) ; one £-inch iron screw-head bolt and
nut (one penny). Cut the wire into two pieces, each
20 inches long, and two pieces 1 6 inches long. If you
can get a tinsmith friend to turn the eyes for you, so
much the better ; you will thus avoid the most difficult
part of the operation, but you would lose some valuable
lessons and the satisfaction of having made the whole
thing yourself.

The accompanying cut will show you how the eyes
are turned and riveted, and how the nut is fixed in the
tube which the tinsmith will make for you, and he will
also solder the nut in the narrow end for a few
coppers. Or you can get him to make the whole
14

The Butterfly Net

concern, as I have done for a friend of mine. I
simply gave the tinsmith mine for a pattern, and in a

DETAIL ATA".

DETAILS OF FOLDING-NIT.

i, Ring open, about 16 inches diameter j z, tin tube with nut soldered in
at narrow end ; 3, net complete, showing wooden handle fitting into
tin tube. Detail A shows how eyes are turned ; B, larger eye for
passing over screw ; C, screw soldered in position.

few days he handed me over an exact duplicate, and
only charged one shilling and sixpence for it.

The net itself is easily made. You will need ij
15

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

yards of the best and strongest muslin and a piece of
stout twilled cotton, with which to make the hollow
binding round the wire for strength. This binding
must be at least 2 inches deep, so as to slip off and on
the ring easily when you wish to repair the ring or
wash the net. Get green muslin if you care for it ; I
tried green, too, but speedily gave it up, as I found the
white net more effective for seeing and handling moths
in after dark.

Do not shape the net down to too fine a point ;
rather make it more of a cup-shape and nearly the
depth of your arm. And, lastly, while we are on the
subject of the net, always carry a few strips of gum
paper with you on an excursion ; they are very handy
and effective for repairing a damage, say, after contact
with a bramble-bush.

Most butterflies are very impatient in the net, and
strongly resent their imprisonment, so either double
your net over the instant a capture is made, or .catch
the net by the neck, so to speak, with your left hand,
leaving your right free for the pinching process.
Pinching must be very carefully done, or your
specimen may be spoiled. It can be done only when
the wings are closed ; you give the insect a sharp nip
between your finger and thumb nails, right under the
junction of the wings and the body — z.£., on the under
side of the thorax, always taking care not to crush or
mangle the specimen. Do not attempt to actually kill
it ; just give a sufficient pinch to stun it ; then you may
open the net, remove your specimen, and pin it in your
16

PLATE 3

'Cop" of "120's" Cotton on Stand, and Setting-Needle for
"Paisley" Method of Setting

How to Check "Grease"

collecting box, which should be as nearly air-tight as
you can make it, and lined with sheet cork. Place
some freshly pounded laurel-leaves secured in a piece of
muslin at one end of your box. The fumes given off
by the bruised leaves soon kill the insects. Don't use
ammonia for killing butterflies ; it alters their colours,
and, in fact, ruins some altogether. Cyanide of potas-
sium or laurel-leaves are the best killing agents, and the
latter are by far the safest for boys to handle, as cyanide
is very poisonous.

Specially-made entomological pins can be purchased
from all dealers in naturalists' requisites. Black
enamelled pins are the vogue just now, and they last
longer than the silvered or gilt ones, and resist "grease"
better. Many insects, you should know, have a small,
and some a large, amount of oil in their bodies, which
gradually makes its presence seen, first in the abdomen,
and later it spreads (if not checked) to the wings. The
oil, coming in contact with the white or yellow pin,
soon corrodes it through ; the black enamel resists its
action longest. Try to check this " greasing " of your
specimens on its first appearance on the body, and if
you notice it before it has spread to the wings all may
be well. Break the abdomen off at once, and drop it
into benzine, where you can let it remain a day or two.
Then transfer it to a box of fine dry plaster of Paris
for another day or so, and you will be surprised how
beautiful and clean it will come out. Another hint :
Push a little pin into each body when broken off, and
attach a while thread to the pin ; now you can do

B.B. 17 3

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

what you like with the body without touching it with
your fingers ; lastly, replace each body, sticking it in
position with a dab of entomological gum, to be
had from Messrs. Watkins and Doncaster, 36,
Strand, W.C.

Supposing you have arrived home with a few
butterflies, and wish to set them. This is best done
as soon as possible after they are killed. They may
remain unset a few days if kept damp and yet properly
aired ; you must prevent them from hardening on the
one hand, and getting mouldy on the other, through
too long and close keeping ; so have a watchful eye on
them until set.

Setting-boards can be either bought or made. This
is a question for each worker to determine for himself.
Some collectors may have special facilities for making
them, while others may have a profusion of pocket
money wherewith to buy them. When I was a boy I
made my own. It was a work of necessity. As a lad
I had always so many specimens to set in summer-time
that it would have been sheer ruination to have bought
all the boards required.

On Plate II. you have an illustration of a setting-
board, and the photograph is in itself an indication of
how butterflies are to be set before being placed in the
permanent collection. Note the setting-bristle mounted
in a cube of cork. This is used to hold the wing in
position while the card braces are being placed. The
collector can easily mount a bristle for himself. A cat,
badger, or other whisker will serve ; do not try to push
18

Setting Butterflies

it through the cube of cork, but glue it between two
pieces ; by doing so you will save your bristle from
being spoiled and make a firmer job.

Keep your old thin postcards, from which to cut
braces, and always have a boxful of various sizes handy,
and in the same box, in a separate compartment, have
an abundance of small, thin pins. Good setting, like
other operations, is largely a matter of practice. Be
careful not to injure the wings in any way, and place
your braces on them so that they will not leave marks.
I find a common fault with beginners is that they do
not lower the specimen far enough down into the
groove of the setting-board, with the result that the
wings are bent and deformed by the braces pressing
them down. See that the wings of your specimens he
flat and naturally spread out over the surface of the
board on either side of the groove.

A setting-needle is sometimes an exceedingly useful
tool. A very neat one can be made in a few minutes
with a goose quill, a little sealing-wax, and '•he finest
sewing-needle you can secure. Melt the wax and fill
one end of the quill for half an inch or so, heat the eye
end of the needle until nearly red-hot, and push it into
the wax. This tool is very useful for adjusting a wing
as occasion demands.

Let your insects remain as long as possible on the
boards ; they should be left on for a fortnight in warm,
dry weather, but longer in the spring and autumn.
The wings of imperfectly dried specimens are liable to
spring up, or droop.

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

There is another method of setting Lepidoptera which
only requires to be more widely known to quickly
supersede the use of braces and bristle. It is sometimes
called the " Northern " method, but I prefer to call it
the " Paisley," because it was first used in that town.
Its advantages are : Greater speed, less apparatus, less
expense, and less liability to damage the specimens.
Instead of the usual setting-board, a block is used — that
is to say, your setting-boards are cut up into short
pieces, in length a little less than the width of the board.
Thus, a board i\ inches wide should be cut into pieces
ij inches long. As no corked surface is needed these
blocks can be made or bought very cheaply ; the usual
cost, from a joiner, is about two shillings per hundred.
The only other requisite is a cop of very fine cotton
" I2O8" or even finer if you can get it. This you will be
able to obtain from a cotton-spinner or his agent ; by-
and-by, as this method of setting becomes more widely
known the dealers will probably stock a few of these
fine cotton-yarn cops.* Plate III. will show you how
to construct a stand for the cop. The rest is easy. Pin
your insect in the same way as you would do for braces ;
place it on the block with wings well down on its sur-
face, holding the block in your left hand. Give your
cotton a turn round the extreme edge of the block, then
bring it directly above your insect. Now blow the

* Readers desirous of adopting this most excellent method of
setting, and yet experiencing difficulty in getting suitable cotton-
yarn, should communicate with the author, Mr. A. M. Stewart, 38,
Ferguslie, Paisley. — EDITOR.

20

Paisley Method of Setting

wing on the left side as far forward as you wish it to
go, and, while it is held extended by your blowing,
bring the cotton down gently across it and there you
have it, secured in position. Give two or three extra
turns to hold it safe and repeat the operation for the
other wing. If the wings should be stiff and refuse to
go far enough forward, secure them as far forward as
they will blow, with one turn of the cotton only, then
gently assist them farther with a setting-needle. When
in a satisfactory position, give the few extra turns of
the cotton. I can set from sixty to one hundred and
twenty insects in an hour by this method.

In removing an insect from a block, draw a sharp
knife across the back of the block and lift off all the
cotton at once. If the body of the specimen being set
needs support, as sometimes happens, give the cotton
two or three cross turns, and with your setting-needle
raise the body on to this as shown on Plate VI. One
hint more : See that your lines diverge from near the
body at the bottom to near the tip of the wings at the
top ; the reason for this is that if you have to slip the
wing forward under a turn of the thread it will not be
damaged if the thread is arranged as indicated, whereas if
your thread be laid on, say, from the outer bottom corner
in towards the head, it would then scrape the wing, and be
sure to remove some of the scales, thus damaging the
specimen. The correct method is shown on Plate VI.
With ordinary care and usage a good cop should last a
year or two.

After your insects are set, by whatever method, they

21

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

need to be put aside in a dry, airy place to harden, and
be secured against the ravages of mice and spiders. For
their better protection, it is usual to place them in a
" drying case," which need not be an elaborate affair.
My drying case was constructed out of an empty box
obtained from the grocer ; judging from the legend on
the outside it had once contained tins of preserved
apples. This is set up on end with the bottom removed
and made into cross shelves. Light muslin cloth is
tacked on in place of the bottom, so as to admit air but
exclude dust. On the front, where the lid was origin-
ally nailed, is a hinged frame, covered with the same
material, acting as a door. This drying house is not
exactly pretty, but it has served its purpose admirably
for many years.

A representative of the larva of each species is now
considered essential to a complete collection of butter-
flies, and it is rendered even more perfect if egg-shells
and chrysalis cases can also be included.

We now have a fairly easy and reliable process for
preserving larvae, a process which any aspiring young
collector can carry through without much trouble or
expense. It is really very simple and costs little.
True, one can purchase apparatus specially made for the
work for ten, or even five, shillings, but equally good
results can be obtained with the expenditure of a few
pence and a little ingenuity. I strongly advise young
folk to make their own apparatus ; by so doing they
develop resourcefulness, and a handy youngster is not
likely to make a failure of his life.

22

Preservation of Larvae

In the first place you will need a hot-air chamber.
Any empty toffee - tin will serve this purpose ; one
somewhere about 6 inches long by 4 inches in diameter
will be a handy size. Get a piece of copper or soft
iron wire, such as milliners use ; give the wire two or
three turns round the tin, twisting it as tightly as you
can : then give the two free ends a turn or two round
a gas-bracket near the burner, so as to bring your tin,
with the open end next you, just over the burner. Or
you may mount the tin over a spirit-lamp, in which
event you will not be troubled with soot gathering on
the outside of your oven. You now have an oven
which you can make as hot as you want it by regulating
your flame ; you will soon discover the right temperature
in which to dry a skin quickly without burning it The
skins of small, thin-skinned caterpillars dry very quickly,
whilst those of large moths, such as the Oak Eggar,
dry more slowly even with more heat.

Your next requirement is a glass blowpipe : this you
can purchase at the chemist's for a copper. Ask for a
glass tube about a foot long and a quarter of an inch
in diameter. Now, this tubing is made of a very soft
and pliable kind of glass, and by heating it over a flame
you should have no difficulty in drawing out one end
of the tube into a fine point, not too long and not too
abrupt ; the illustration (Plate VII.) will show you the
right length of the point. Hold the end over the gas-
jet, keep turning it round, and in a minute it will
become red and soft ; remove the end of the tube from
the flame, grasp it with a pair of forceps, and gently
23

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

and steadily pull the heated portion until it is drawn
to a point of the required length. Nip off the part you
caught with the forceps, and your tube is ready. Or
another way is to heat the tube in the middle, and pull
the two ends apart ; this will give you two blowpipes,
and you can make a fine point to one for small cater-
pillars and a wider aperture to the other for large ones.
I used to know a friendly chemist who would " point "
as many tubes as I wanted at his Bunsen burner in a
few minutes. To complete your blowpipe, you will
need about 2 inches of a watch-spring — any watch-
repairer will give you a broken spring. The photograph
on Plate VII. shows how the piece of spring is placed
and used ; it is bent to the required shape while heated,
and bound in position with fine copper wire. The wire
I use is the same as that required for mounting dried
larva skins ; it can be obtained at any shop where
electrical appliances are sold ; it is an extremely fine
wire covered with green silk thread.

Your larva-preserving outfit is completed with a sheet
of blotting-paper and an ordinary lead pencil. I will
now describe the process.

There could be no better species to begin with than
the caterpillar of the Large Garden White butterfly ; get
one as nearly full-grown as possible, lay it out on the
blotting-pad before you, place the lead pencil across it
gently, but firmly, just behind the head, and roll it
towards the tail. This kills the larva instantly, and
empties out its internal organs by the anal orifice. Roll
your pencil over it again to make sure 'the skin is
24

PLATE 4.

1. Clouded Yellow (Male)

2. Brimstone (Male)

3. Silver-washed Kritillary (Male)

4. Dark-green Fritillary (Male)

5. High Brown Fritillary

6. Queen of Spain Fritillary

7. Small Pearl-bordered Fritillar

8. Pearl-bordered Fritillary

9. Greasy Fritillary

Storing the Collection

thoroughly clean inside ; then insert your blowpipe
into the anal orifice, letting the spring down on the
last segment so as to hold the skin on ; apply your
mouth to the other end of the blowpipe, blow the skin
out gently, and insert in the hot-air oven. Keep
blowing gently for a few seconds ; watch progress ;
touch the skin with your finger to see if it is getting
hard and dry. Don't blow too hard and make it look
like a bursting sausage ; try to keep it as natural in
appearance as possible. In a few minutes it will be
quite hard and dry ; when dry, raise the spring, and a
slight touch with the thumb-nail will liberate it from
the blowpipe. The skin is now ready for mounting
on silk- covered wire or a thin dry twig with a little
entomological gum or seccotine. Our specimen is now
ready to take its place in the collection.

We now have to face the problem of storing the
collection. It is probably beyond the means of a young
collector to purchase a cabinet with drawers, costing
ten shillings per drawer, and he will be well advised to
keep his specimens in store-boxes which he may be able
to make for himself. I made some very serviceable
ones with scented soap-boxes got from our grocer.
Any size will do, but it is best to have your boxes all
of one size if possible, say 10 inches by 14 inches by
4 inches. Get a few light deal boxes about these
dimensions, nail on the lids, paper them all over the
outside with good stout brown packing-paper having a
glossy surface ; paste it on with thin glue ; set aside a
day or two to dry. When dry, take a sharp saw and

B.B. 25 4

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

cut the boxes round the sides and ends, so that each
box is divided into two equal traylike halves. Glue
a stout cardboard shell round the inside of one half,
and attach the other half by two small brass hinges.
The cardboard shell rises above the sides of the tray,
and when the other half of the box is folded over it
" stays put," as the Yankee says ; and, in addition, you
have a fairly air-tight construction. These store-boxes
fold after the manner of a book-form chess or draught
board. Each half requires to be lined on the inside
with sheet cork, which you can get from dealers in
entomologists' sundries, and finally covered with thin
white paper. Such a store-box costs less than one and
sixpence. Keep two or three boxes for duplicate
specimens, and as many for your permanent collection.
By-and-by you will want glass-topped cases, but by the
time you have arrived at that stage you should have
gained sufficient experience to enable you to know
where to buy them.

See that every specimen before being transferred to
your permanent collection bears with it a small label
setting forth the date and place of capture, thus :

EPPING, ABBEY WOOD, HERTS,

9/6/1 i. 7/9/11-

J. Roberts. Robertson.

Keep these tickets as inconspicuous as possible and with
the writing or printing in such a position as to be easily
read without requiring to remove the insect.

The following list of British butterflies is thoroughly
modern, and in labelling your specimens you should
26

List of British Butterflies

adopt its nomenclature, and also follow the order given
in arranging your collection. Both Latin and English
names are included, but if you wish to be a thorough
entomologist you should accustom yourself to use the
scientific names. The Latin name is the same every-
where " from China to Peru." If you use an English
name of a butterfly in writing to a foreign collector he
will probably fail to recognize the species referred to,
but if you give the scientific name he will know it at
once.

LIST OF BRITISH BUTTERFLIES

ARRANGED IN THEIR FAMILIES AND GENERA, WITH
THEIR SCIENTIFIC AND POPULAR NAMES.

Family : PAPILIONIDJE.
"Papilla machaon.

SWALLOW-TAIL.

Family : PIERID^E.
Aporia cratagi.

BLACK-VEINED WHITE.

Pieris braaica.

LARGE WHITE.

Pieris rap*.

SMALL WHITE.

Tigris napi.

GREEN-VEINED WHITE.

Pieris daplidice.

BATH WHITE.

Euchloe cardamines.

ORANGE-TIP.

Leucophasia sinapis.

WOOD WHITE.

Co/ias byale.

PALE CLOUDED YELLOW.

Family : PIERID^E — continued.
Co/ias edusa.

CLOUDED YELLOW.

Gonepteryx rbamni*

BRIMSTONE.

Family: NYMPHALLLXE.
Argynnis selene.

SMALL PEARL - BORDERED
FRITILLARY.

Argynnis eupbrosyne.

PEARL-BORDERED FRITIL-
LARY.

Argynnis fatbonia.

QUEEN OF SPAIN FRITIL-
LARY.

Argynnis aglaia.

DARK GREEN FRITILLARY.

Argynnis adippe.

HIGH BROWN FRITILLARY.

Capture and Preservation of Butterflies

Family : NYMPHALID^) —

continued.
Argynnis paphia.

SILVER-WASHED FRITILLARY.

Melitaa aurinia.

GREASY FRITILLARY.

Melit&a cinxia.

GLANV1LLE FRITILLARY.

Melitaa athalia.

HEATH FRITILLARY.

Vanessa c-album.

COMMA.

Vanessa polychloros.

LARGE TORTOISESHELL.
Vanessa urtic*.

SMALL TORTOISESHELL.

Vanessa to.

PEACOCK.

Vanessa antiopa.

CAMBERWELL BEAUTY.

Vanessa atalanta.

RED ADMIRAL,

Vanessa cardui.

PAINTED LADY.

Limenitis sibylla.

WHITE ADMIRAL.

Family : APATURID^E.
Apatura iris.

PURPLE EMPEROR.

Family : SATYRID^E.
Melanargia galatbea.

MARBLED WHITE.

Erebia epiphron.

MOUNTAIN RINGLET.

Erebia <etbiops.

NORTHERN BROWN, OR
SCOTCH ARGUS.

Family : SATYRID^E — con-
tinued.
Pararge ageria.

SPECKLED WOOD.

Pararge megccra.

WALL BROWN.

Satyrus semele.

GRAYLING.

Epinephele janira.

MEADOW BROWN.

Epinephele tit bonus.

SMALL MEADOW BROWN.

Epinepbele hyperantbus.

RINGLET.

C&nonympba typbon.

MARSH RINGLET.

Canonympba pampbilus.

SMALL HEATH.

Family: LYC^NID^E.
Thecla betulee.

BROWN HAIRSTREAK.

Tbecla w-album.

WHITE-LETTER HAIRSTREAK.

Thecla pruni.

BLACK HAIRSTREAK.

Thecla quercus.

PURPLE HAIRSTREAK.

Thecla rubi.

GREEN HAIRSTREAK.

Polyommatus dispar.

LARGE COPPER.

Ptlyommatus phlaas.

SMALL COPPER.

Lyctena beetica.

LONG-TAILED BLUB.

Lycana agon.

SILVER-STUDDED BLUE,

28

The British Butterflies Described

Family : LYC^ENID^ — con-
tinued.
L'jcana asirarche.

BROWN ARGUS.

Lyc&na icarus.

COMMON BLUB.

Lycana bellargus.

CLIFDEN BLUE.

Lyceena corydon.

CHALK-HILL BLUE.

Lyc<rna argiolus.

AZURE BLUB.

Lyc<rna semiargus.

MAZARINE BLUB.

Lyctgna minima.

LITTLE BLUE.

Lyceena arion.

LARGE BLUE.

Family: ERYCINID^E.
N erne obi us lucina.

OUKE OF BURGUNDY.

Fami/y: HESPERID^.
Syricbtkus malvce.

GRIZZLED SKIPPER.

Nisoniades tages.

DINGY SKIPPER.

Hesperia thaumas.

SMALL SKIPPER.

Hesperia lineola.

ESSEX SKIPPER.

Hesperia action.

LULWORTH SKIPPER.

Hesperia sylvanus.

LARGE SKIPPER.

Hesperia comma.

SILVER-SPOTTED SKIPPER.

Carterocephalus pakemon.

CHECKERED SKIPPER.

The remaining pages of this volume will be devoted
to a description of the species mentioned in the fore-
going list, together with notes on habits and other
points. Assisted by the splendid coloured plates, which
are produced from actual specimens, and the notes in the
following pages, the young collector should have no
difficulty in identifying the specimens he secures.

CHAPTER III

THE BRITISH BUTTERFLIES DESCRIBED

THE SWALLOW-TAIL (Papilio Machaon), Plate I., Fig. I.
— I find, in Scotland, where I live, that the first ques-
tion put by friends looking over one's insect treasures
29

The British Butterflies Described

usually refers to this butterfly. "Is that a British
butterfly ?" they ask ; and on being assured that it is,
they tender the information that they never saw one
like it in this neighbourhood ; and it takes much
explanation to make them understand how rare and
local some butterflies and moths are.

Alas ! he is our one and only Swallow-Tail — the con-
necting link between our small island family and the
great host of tropical and subtropical Swallow-Tails
that flaunt their gorgeous colours under sunnier skies.
And we hope he may long remain with us. The
incentive to travel and capture this butterfly in his
native haunts is not so great as it may have been half a
century ago. For a few pence, or by exchange, the
larva or chrysalis can be had from a dealer, and with
ordinary care and attention it is not a difficult species
to rear, and thus see alive.

That this species is already getting scarcer should be
a warning to all who are interested in the preservation
of our native fauna. Its extermination might not be a
very difficult task ; and although it is common in many
places on the Continent, its reintroduction into England
would certainly be attended with great trouble and
difficulty.

Two years ago (1909) an experiment was made,
under very favourable conditions, to " naturalize " a
colony of this fine butterfly at Easton, near Dunmow, in
Essex, the property of Lord Warwick. Lord Warwick
and Professor Meldola laid down a large number of
chrysalids which duly hatched, and, although the sur-
30

The Swallow-Tail

rounding marsh land had been liberally stocked with the
food-plant, yet no eggs or larvae were found after the
butterflies had passed their season, nor have any been
seen since.

Doubtless the butterfly has many natural enemies,
and when we consider the draining, burning, and rush-
cutting that go on in these fen lands, it will be apparent
that the time cannot be far distant when an effort will
need to be made, such as at Wicken, to provide " Cities
of Refuge," for many of our rare and persecuted little
friends. I speak for birds, butterflies, flowers and
ferns. An educated public taste would do more for
them all than any amount of Acts of Parliament.

The Swallow-Tail measures fully 3 inches across the
expanded wings ; the prevailing tint is a pale primrose
yellow, with bars and masses of black, the latter
powdered with yellow scales on the fore- wings, and with
pale blue on the hind-wings. There are also two red eye
spots on the inner angle of the hind-wings near the tails.
The under side looks not unlike a washed-out version
of the upper, with a little more red on the hind-wings.

The caterpillar, too, is very beautiful, being green in
colour, belted with black, and the black is studded with
red spots. It thrives well on various members of the
carrot family — carrot, parsley, fennel, celery ; it has
occasionally been found feeding on the common carrot
leaves in rural gardens in neighbourhoods where the
insect abounds.

The chrysalis, in which form the insect passes through
the winter, is hung up in quite the orthodox manner,

The British Butterflies Described

belted round the back and attached at the tail. If you
should find chrysalids in this position during the winter
months and wish to remove them, cut away the whole
support, and set them up again in your hatching cage, as
you found them. Always avoid unnecessary handling
of these delicate objects.

There are certainly two, and probably three, broods
during a favourable summer, so this butterfly may be
captured from May to August. Its headquarters are in
the Fen counties of Cambridge and Norfolk, and it is
found in many similar localities in fewer numbers.

BLACK-VEINED WHITE (Aporia Crat^egi\ Plate I.,
Fig. 2. — This is one of the rarest of our butterflies,
though why it should be so is rather difficult to say.
As it feeds upon hawthorn in the larval state the puzzle
is all the greater, as a commoner or more widely
distributed plant it would be hard to find. It may be
also found on blackthorn, cherry, plum, apple, and
pear. It is not difficult to distinguish this fine insect
from all the other " Whites " on our list. The wings
are rather thinly scaled ; you can note this by holding
the insect up to the light, and looking through the
wing with an ordinary pocket-lens. Do the same with
its near neighbour, the Large Garden White, and you
will see a difference — the Black- Veined White is semi-
transparent, while the other is quite dense.

The almost black network of veins is another un-
mistakable feature, as is the entire absence of a fringe
to the wings. Two and a half inches is the average
expanse of the extended wings.
32

PLATE 5.

1. r.lauville Fritillary

2. Heath Kritillary

3. Comma

1. Small Tortois-eshetl

5 Large Tortoiseshell
0 Cambervvell Beauty
7. IVac<K-k

Large Garden White

The caterpillar is rather hairy, dull-coloured under-
neath, black on the back, with two lines of broad red
spots running from head to tail. When you find this
caterpillar, you generally get a whole brood of them, as
they are gregarious and live under a web until nearly
fully fed.

The chrysalis is of a bright straw colour, spotted and
streaked with black, and is not so angular as the
chrysalis of the Large Garden White.

The butterfly is out in midsummer, and is rarely
seen outside of the most southern counties, and even
there it seems to prefer the coast. In Continental
gardens it sometimes attacks the fruit-trees in such
numbers as to constitute a plague.

THE LARGE GARDEN WHITE BUTTERFLY (Pieris
brassic<e\ Plate I., Fig. 3, is well known to everybody.
Town and country seem to be the same to him ; indeed,
I do believe he lives and thrives best in the town and
village gardens ; only twice have I met with the larva
in a really wild situation, once finding a few caterpillars
on a lonely shore in Arran, and I once got a chrysalis
on a beech-tree trunk on the border of a large wood.
Cabbage, kale, savoy, and cress, arc the plants which
the female usually selects as the most suitable to Jay her
eggs on, but as the caterpillars grow towards maturity
there are few plants they will not attack, especially if
they are driven by hunger and a lack of their usual
food. The butterfly hardly needs description ; suffice it
to say that the female, besides having a rather larger
expanse of black at the tip of the fore-wing, has also

B.B. 33 5

The British Butterflies Described

two black spots and a dash (see figure) on the same
wing. These are entirely wanting on the upper side of
the male, but are present on the under side. The male is
a little smaller than the female. Beyond question this
butterfly is the most destructive of all the British
species ; fortunately it is largely held in check by
ichneumon flies. Once I brought home a dozen or
two caterpillars of this species from an isolated locality
on the Mull of Kintyre, hoping to obtain some possible
varieties. Not one butterfly did I hatch ; they had all
been stung, and mostly by a large grey dipterous
fly (Plate XI., Fig. 4), although some few contained
the little blackish imp which is their usual parasite.
This little fellow it is who spins the small cocoons
round the shrivelled skin of the victim (see Plate XI.,
Figs. 3, 5).

The eggs are laid singly or in small groups on the
backs of leaves, and are somewhat long ; they are
straw-coloured, and stand up on end, so they are not
difficult to find and collect, or destroy if too numerous.
The caterpillar is yellow, speckled with black, and
slightly spiny ; it is also one of the easiest and most
satisfactory to preserve. The chrysalis may be found
during the winter attached to walls and fences. The
butterfly is common throughout the summer.

SMALL GARDEN WHITE (Pieris rap<e), Plate I., Fig. 4.
— This butterfly is very like the last, but much smaller.
Both species are generally found together. On the wing
and in the caterpillar state they find the same nooks
and corners in which to pass the winter as chrysaJids.
34

PLATE 6

Paisley " Method of Setting

Green-Veined White

But the caterpillars are very different in appearance.
In this species the colour is a soft velvety green, with a
faint yellow line down the back. Stretched at full
length on the midrib of a cabbage-leaf, it is by no
means a conspicuous object, and may be quite easily
overlooked ; but if you see the leaves riddled with
holes, and find excrement lying between them and at
the base, don't cease looking until you find the culprit,
sometimes deep in a cabbage, or on the back of the
outer leaves.

Other caterpillars besides those of the Large and
Small Whites may be present in force, notably those of
the Cabbage moth (Mamestra brassic*}, large stout
caterpillars varying from green to black ; they are far
too numerous, so have no compunction about destroy-
ing all you find. The caterpillar is apt to lose its
colour in preserving, as is the case with all green
caterpillars.

GREEN- VEINED WHITE (Pieris napi\ Plate I., Fig. 5.
— Unlike the last two species, this White is more often
found in the country than the town, and in my experi-
ence it is only a casual visitor to suburban gardens. I
have never found the caterpillars there.

To distinguish it from the last species it is only
necessary to examine the under side, where both fore-
and hind-wings are strongly veined with greyish-black,
the female particularly so. On the upper side the veins
are distinctly marked, but the line is finer.

In a rather wet meadow where Ladies' Smock abounds
in early June, I have seen this butterfly in profusion,
35

The British Butterflies Described

and not at all easy to capture when the sun was high.
But when King Sol is sinking in the west, and all
decent butterflies have gone to rest, a turn through the
tame meadow while the light still lingers reveals the
Veined Whites all at rest on the flower-heads of the
Ladies' Smocks. It is then quite easy to select a few of
the best, and search for varieties, until in the deepening
twilight butterflies and flowers became so blended as to
present only a whitish blurr to the eye. There are two
broods — one out in June, the other in August.

The caterpillar is green, with yellow spots on the
sides, and may be found on various plants of the
cruciferous order, the cress group in particular. I have
found it on the Ladies' Smock (Cardamine pratense] and
on the large-flowered Bitter Cress (Cardamine amara).
For your collection always mount at least one of each
sex with the under side uppermost. The specimen
figured is a female ; the male has only one round spot
on each fore-wing.

BATH WHITE (Pieris Daplidice\ Plate I., Fig. 6.—
This is the rarest of all our Whites ; indeed, it is
doubtful if it breeds in this country at all. A few
specimens are taken annually on the south-east coast
and neighbourhood, and the likelihood is that they
are migrants from the Continent.

On the other hand, it is just possible that on account
of its close resemblance to the Green- Veined White
when on the wing, it is often passed over when
mixed up with and flying amongst a number of that
species.

36

Orange-Tip

The sexes are easily distinguished by the female
having the upper side of the hind-wings broadly
checkered with a double band of black spots, which is
entirely wanting in the male. The under side, how-
ever, of both sexes is beautifully marbled in dark green
on a creamy white ground. The caterpillar is a dull
green with yellow lines on back and sides, and may be
fed on cabbage or Dyer's Rocket. The chrysalis is
very similar to that of the Small Garden White.

The butterfly may be met with in May and June,
and again in August and September.

THE ORANGE-TIP BUTTERFLY (Euchloe Cardamines^
Plate I., Fig. 7. — This is the only member of its genus
inhabiting this country, though there are several others
met with on the Continent. It has a wide range in
Britain and may be met with from Aberdeenshire to
the south coast of England, although it appears to be
becoming scarcer and more local in the northern half
of the kingdom. The ground colour of the upper side
of the wings is white, with a large orange patch occupy-
ing almost the outer half of the fore-wing, relieved by
a black tip and a black spot. In the female these black
marks are larger, but the orange is entirely wanting.
The under side of the fore-wing is like the upper, but
the under side of the hind-wing is beautifully marbled
in dark green, an effect obtained by the commingling
of black scales on a yellow ground.

The caterpillar is green, with a white line on the
sides, and feeds on various species of Cardamine; hence
meadow-lands are its favourite resorts, and there the
37

The British Butterflies Described

curious sharp-looking little chrysalis may be found
hung up to some dead stem during winter.

The butterfly appears in early June and does not
generally survive that month.

THE WOOD WHITE BUTTERFLY (Lcucophasia
sinapis), Plate I., Fig. 8. — This is the smallest and
most fragile of our white butterflies. The wings are
white with a black tip on the fore-wing, and the under
side of the hind-wing clouded with black scales. The
body is long, slender, and a little flattened laterally.
It is not a common species, and is very local where it
does occur. It has been found as far north as the
Lake District, and down to the south coast." It is
unrecorded for Scotland, but has been taken in Ireland.

The caterpillar is green, with yellow lines on the
sides ; it feeds on various members of the pea family —
Vetch, Trefoil, etc. It appears on the wing in May,
and sometimes a second brood occurs in August ; so
you may look for the caterpillar in June and again in
September.

THE PALE CLOUDED YELLOW BUTTERFLY (Colias
Hyale), Plate I., Fig. 9. — 1 think there can be little
doubt that this fine butterfly is on the increase with us ;
from all over the southern counties come records of
its comparative plenty. In the Entomologist (October,
1911) I read of over one hundred being seen or
captured by various collectors. Norfolk, Suffolk,
Essex, Kent, Bucks, are amongst the favoured places,
and Lucerne- or Clover-fields are the attractions.

The question of the migration of this and the follow-
38

PLATE »

Apparatus for Preserving Larvae

Clouded Yellow

ing species is still very far from being satisfactorily
settled. That we do get a swarm over from the
Continent when conditions are favourable is a matter of
common knowledge, but whether we have resident and
permanent colonies of our own is still doubtful. In
any case this year (1911) has been a Hyale year, and
we give thanks. The ground colour of this butterfly
is a pale primrose-yellow. There is a broad black border
beginning at the tip of the fore-wing and continuing
on to the hind-wing, where it gradually dies out at the
bottom angle ; placed on this band of black are a few
yellow spots. There is also a black spot on the fore-
wing, and a faint orange spot near the middle of the
hind-wing. The under side is more of a yellow shade,
and a line of brown spots runs round the outer margin
of both wings. There is a silvery spot in the centre of
the hind- wings, like a figure 8 bordered with pinkish
brown, and in fine fresh specimens the fringe is of the
latter colour. The female is a shade lighter in ground
colour and also shows more black.

The caterpillar may be looked for in June and July
on Clover and Lucerne ; it is green, with yellow lines
running along the back and sides. The chrysalis is
green with a single yellow line.

The latter half of August and the first half of
September cover the best period of its flight in this
country ; on the Continent there is a spring brood.

THE CLOUDED YELLOW (Colias Edusa), Plate IV.,
Fig. i. — As with the last species, we have still much to
learn of the habits of this fine butterfly. Some years
39

The British Butterflies Described

it is plentiful, while in others hardly a specimen will be
seen — and as for the caterpillars, we never hear of them
being successfully searched for. The probability is that
from a few spring visitors from the Continent we get a
number of descendants in August, when a great many
more arrive from across the Channel and mingle with
them. The distribution of nearly all animals is
regulated by the food-supply, the climate, or their
enemies ; yet none of these seem to satisfactorily
account for the disappearance and reappearance of
Edusa with us. It is a strong flying insect with a
roving disposition, and on quite a few occasions it has
been noted as far north as Arran and the Ayrshire coast,
in Scotland. The brilliant orange and black wings
make its identity unmistakable. Not so, however,
with the light sulphur-coloured female variety, which
very nearly approaches the typical female form of
Hyaley but it may be distinguished by the broader black
band on both fore- and hind- wings, and a heavy sprinkling
of black scales near the base of the former, and all over
the latter. The orange spot, too, in the centre of the
hind-wing is deeper, and, being on a darker ground,
looks much brighter. There is no corresponding male
variation.

The caterpillar is dark green, with a light line on
each side, varied with yellow and orange touches. It
feeds on various plants of the pea order — vetches,
trefoils, clovers, etc. The chrysalis is brown spotted,
and is striped with a yellow line. The butterfly
appears with us during August and September.
40

PLATE 8.

1. Red Admiral

2. Painted Lady

.T Milk Weed

4. White Admiral

5. Purple Emperor (Male)

The Brimstone

THE BRIMSTONE BUTTERFLY (Gonepteryx rhamni),
Plate IV., Fig. 2. — When I glance at this beautiful
butterfly, I always feel inclined to laugh, not at the
butterfly — oh dear no ! — but at a practical joke I once
saw through, much to the astonishment of a soldier
friend. He had brought home a large assortment of
fine butterflies from India, and in going over the stock
my attention was arrested by the peculiar pattern on
one of them. For ground colour and outline it
certainly resembled our own Brimstone, but what
weird markings ! Turning the hand-glass on it
revealed the fact that it was hand-tainted. I asked the
sergeant who did this, and then he suddenly remembered,
and gave vent to a loud guffaw. " The scamps, by
Jove ! That carries me back to a certain mess-room at
Darjeeling when this insect was handed over to me by
a certain young officer as a great rarity. He was sure
there was not another like it in the camp ; and he was
right. Lots of our fellows went * butterfly dodging,'
and had big collections to take home ; but not one of
them had this one. They named it * The Officer's
Fancy.' Now, I recollect seeing this same officer out
sketching and fooling around with a box of paints.
It's clever, though, isn't it ? He took us all completely
in." This was hardly to be wondered at ! The colours
had been very delicately laid on, and the pattern
adopted was of the eye-spot and streak order, so that the
whole effect was quite harmonious and in good taste.

But the Brimstone requires no artificial aids to make
it a warm favourite with all butterfly lovers ; if it lacks

B.I, 41 6

The British Butterflies Described

variety of colouring, it more than makes up for it in
the beautiful sweeping outlines of the wings. No other
butterfly on our list can show such sweet harmony of
line and contour. Like a breeze-blown daffodil, he
greets us on our early spring rambles, just when the
opening blossoms and leafy buds are all doubly welcome,
in that we have missed their friendly presence through
the long days of winter. The female hibernates in all
sorts of out-of-the-way corners — in dense holly-bushes,
piles of brushwood, chinks of walls, etc., coming forth
again in May or even earlier to deposit her eggs on the
Buckthorn and its allies. The antennae are rather
short and more like a club than a drum-stick, while the
beautiful white silken mane along the back is quite a
noticeable feature. The female is of a much lighter
tint than the male.

The caterpillar is green, with paler sides, along which
runs a white line : it may be found on the Buckthorn
from May till July. The chrysalis, which is supported
on the tail and band principle, is green and yellow, and
rather oddly shaped. It hatches in the course of about
three weeks. This butterfly is a plentiful insect south
of the Border, but we have yet to record it for Scotland.

THE SMALL PEARL-BORDERED FRiTiLLARY(y?r£y«»/j
Selene], Plate IV., Fig. 7. — Like all the members of its
family the ground colour of the wings of this insect is
a reddish-brown, marbled and spotted with black. For
size it differs little from the next species, and the upper
surface of the two being so much alike, it is sometimes
difficult to distinguish between them. The under side
4*

Pearl-Bordered Fritillary

(Plate X., Fig. 3), especially of the hind- wings, how-
ever, renders the task of identification comparatively
easy : the ground colour is a deeper brown in this
species and causes the pearl border to stand out in
stronger relief; besides, numerous other pearl spots
brighten its surface. It is a local butterfly, with a wide
range of distribution both in England and Scotland ;
and where it does occur it is generally common. In
the South it may be double brooded, but in the North
the June flight is all we see of it for the year.

The caterpillar is black, with an interrupted white
line along the back ; the spines are brown ; it feeds
on the dog violet (Viola canina}. The chrysalis is ash-
coloured.

THE PEARL - BORDERED FRITILLARY (Argynnis
Euphrosyne), Plate IV., Fig. 8. — Perhaps this is the
commoner of these twin butterflies, though its range of
distribution is much the same as the foregoing. In its
case, also, the under side of the /tfW-wings furnishes us
with the main points of distinction. Here the mark-
ings are a warm mid-red shade on an ochreous ground ;
the pearl border is very pronounced, and in the middle
of the wing a single pearl reposes. Nearer the body
there is another smaller spot hardly so bright. If you
set several of these two species with the under side
uppermost, you will soon get quite familiar with the
difference between them. Plate X., Figs. 3, 5, shows
this distinction.

The caterpillar is similar to the last species and
prefers Viola as a food -plant, but I have found it in
43

The British Butterflies Described

little colonies where it most certainly must have fed on
other plants, as Violas of any species were distinctly
rare in the district, which is wet and marshy. For
Scotland there is a single brood in June, while in the
South it is double-brooded — May and August.

THE QUEEN OF SPAIN FRITILLARY (Argynnis
Lathonia), Plate IV., Fig. 6. — This is, unfortunately,
the rarest of all our Fritillaries ; unfortunately, because
it is the most beautiful and brilliant. In outline the
fore-wing differs from that of the two preceding species,
being slightly concave on the outer margin, while the
hind-wing bears a slight trace of scalloping. But it is
on the under side where all the treasures lie. A row
of seven pearl spots adorns the outer margin of the
hind-wing ; then comes a row of small dark spots, each
with a pearl-spot in its centre ; then a profusion of
large and small glittering patches completes this beautiful
wing. The under side of the fore-wing has only three
(or sometimes a tiny fourth) pearl spots near the tip.
This butterfly is taken occasionally in clover-fields in
our south- eastern counties. The specimens taken there
are possibly migrants from the Continent.

The caterpillar is dark, with a white line on the back,
yellow lines on the sides, and is clothed with short red
spines. It may be found on Violas. As this insect is
double-brooded on the Continent, it is well to look out
for it during the whole summer from May to September.

THE DARK GREEN FRITILLARY (Argynnis Aglaia\
Plate IV., Fig. 4. — The only claim this handsome species
has to be called green lies in the fact that the under side

Dark-Green Fritillary

of the hind-wing has for its ground colour a delightful
tawny green. But the main attraction is the lovely
rows of pearl spots ornamenting the under side (Plate X.,
Fig. i) ; and there are four of these rows. One, and it
is perhaps the finest, runs round near the outer margin,
and consists of nine gems ; the next, a little nearer
the body, has eight, and is slightly irregular ; the next
row has only three, rather widely apart ; and the fourth,
and last, has also three very small ones quite near the
base of the wing. The under sides of the fore-wings
have also their pearl spots. Near the outer margin you
will find a row with eight of them, beginning boldly
near the tip ; they gradually fade until the last of the
row is barely visible. On some male specimens there
are two silvery spots also near the tip, but on other
specimens these are absent. The under side of the
fore-wing has very little green to show ; the tip of the
wing is just tinted, and this tint is carried along the
costal margin. I have described the under side in some
detail, as I have seen it described as having only three
rows of spots on the hind-wing, and no pearl spots at
all on the fore-wing ; and for another reason, I want
you always to confirm your captures by a good text-
book, as by so doing you will learn some valuable
lessons in comparison and observation, and in noting
details ; and also it will enable you, perhaps, to add
some fine variations to your collection.

The caterpillar lives on various species of wild Viola^
and may be found on them in the early summer, but
as the butterfly has a wide range of distribution, season
45

The British Butterflies Described

and locality make it vary a good deal in the time of its
appearance. It has been found from the North of
Scotland to the South of England. July is the month
to look for it. I always find it more abundant near
the coast. It is a bold flying species, and often difficult
to capture ; but in good settled weather I have taken
it frequently at rest on thistle-tops at sundown.

THE HIGH BROWN FRITILLARY (Argynnis Adippe},
Plate IV., Fig. 5. — In this and the foregoing we have
again two species very easy to confound, and all the
more so when we note that stable characters are some-
what hard to find on the upper surface of the wings —
in general the ground colour in Adippe is richer and
darker, and the outer margin of the fore-wing is not
so rounded as in Aglaia^ being either straight or very
slightly concave. The arrangement of the second row
of spots, which runs round near the outer margin of both
wings, is different in the two species, but they are very
inconstant and even vary in the sexes ; so the under side
must be again consulted (Plate X., Fig. 2). And here
we have an unfailing test. In Adippe, on the under side
of the hind- wing near the outer margin, there is a row
of dark red spots lined internally with black, and in the
centre there is a small pearl spot. These eyelike spots
are never present in Aglaia. The general green tint,
too, of Aglaia is absent in Adippe. The silvery spots
on the under side of the fore-wing of Aglaia are rarely
to be seen in this species. In some females of Adippe
three shadowy spots are visible near the tip. I have
never seen these on a male ; so we have it that, in the
46

Silver-Washed Fritillary

great majority of specimens of Adippe^ the under side
of the fore-wing is devoid of silvery spots. While
Adippe may be fairly common in the South, it is by no
means so widely distributed, nor does it range so far
north as Aglaia. In Scotland it is unknown.

The caterpillar is dark grey, with a whitish line along
the back, and is covered with rust-red spines. It feeds
on Viola. The butterfly appears in July.

THE SILVER-WASHED FRITILLARY (Argynnis Paphia),
Plate IV., Fig. 3. — This is the largest of our native
Fritillaries, and is easily distinguished from the others
by an entire absence of the silvery spots so character-
istic of this genus. The upper surface of the male is
of a warm, orange-brown, streaked and dotted with
black on both wings ; the under side of the fore-wing
is much lighter, the spots on it are smaller, and the tip
is marked with olive ; the hind-wing under side bears
a fine combination of pale olive with faint lavender
and silver streaks, while its outer margin is distinctly
scalloped. The female is quite different. In it the
ground colour of the upper side of the fore-wings is much
paler, and the black streaks along the veins are absent.
The hind-wings have the same pale tint, but with a
more decided tinge of olive, while the under sides of
both wings, and especially of the hind ones, are pale
olive green, and the scalloping round the outer margin
of both wings is more pronounced. In the female
variety Valesina^ the upper surface has a dark olive
ground shading out towards the tip of the fore-wings.
This, with the black spots lying on it, gives the butterfly
47

The British Butterflies Described

quite a black appearance at a little distance. This
variation is mostly found in the New Forest. The
butterfly is common in many districts of England, but
is rare in Scotland.

The caterpillar is covered with long spines, nearly
black, and has a pale line along the back and sides ; it
feeds on Dog Violet and Wild Raspberry. The chrysalis
is rather stout, hangs by the tail, and is greyish, with
shining points. The perfect insect is out in July and
August

THE GREASY FRITILLARY (Melitaa aurinia\
Plate IV., Fig. 9. — This may not seem a pretty or
poetical name for a butterfly. Beauty, poetry, and the
"fitness of things," might have suggested a more
appropriate title ; but, as Dickens has said, " the wisdom
of our ancestors is not to be disturbed by unhallowed
hands," and as the technical name is in this instance
some compensation, we may have to let it go at that.
" Greasy " the butterfly is not, but only looks as if it
were, when slightly worn ; and, owing to some peculi-
arity in the arrangement of its scales, this slight wearing
is very soon accomplished. Happily it is not a difficult
insect to rear, and fine specimens without a suspicion of
greasiness in their appearance can thus be had for the
cabinet. This butterfly is quite distinct from any other
British Fritillary, inasmuch as it has two very distinct
ground colours on the upper side of its wings, a rich
orange-brown and a pale ochreous yellow. The bands
of this latter shade are bordered with dark brown ; a
reference to the coloured figure will show how these
48

PLATE 9.

1. Marbled W.'iite

2. Mountain Ringlet

3. Scotch Ariins

4. Speckled Wood

5. Wall Urown

0. Grayling (Male)

7. Meadow Brown (Female)

8. Small Meadcw Urown

9. Ringlet

10. Marsh Ringlet

Glanville Fritillary

colours are disposed. It is a rather variable species,
and is widely distributed. It is found in glens and
damp meadows and is generally abundant where found,
though local.

The caterpillar is black, with a greyish line along the
sides, and a small white dot above this between each
segment. The chrysalis is ashen, with red and black
spots ; it is rather " dumpy," and may be found on
various low plants early in the summer, and again, in
some southern localities, in the autumn. Like nearly
all the Fritillaries the larvae hibernate while very small,
so it is best to leave them in their natural state until
fairly well fed. Narrow-leaved Plantain, Scabious, and,
some observers say, Foxglove and Speedwell, are its
favourite foods. The times of flight are May and
August. In many Scotch localities, Argyllshire, Ayr-
shire, etc., this species is abundant.

THE GLANVILLE FRITILLARY (Melitaa Cinxia),
Plate V., Fig. i. — This little butterfly is one of the
" threatened species." If due care and discretion be not
exercised, there is a possibility of its becoming extinct in
this country. " Threatened people live long," but it
were wise not to push our little friend too far ; and
wiser still if collectors who live in or near its favourite
haunts would not only try to preserve it, but also make
some attempt to spread its range into other localities
apparently suitable for its propagation. We have far
too few native butterflies to run the risk of losing any
we have. And as the food-plant is the Ribbed or
Narrow-leaved Plantain, it follows that even were this

B.B. 49 7

The British Butterflies Described

species as abundant as its food would warrant, it could
not possibly do any harm to anyone, either gardener or
farmer. v The ground colour might be called Fritillary
brown, relieved with the usual black bands and spots ;
the hind-wings show a distinct row of black spots on a
light ground running round near the outer margin.
But the under side (Plate X., Fig. 4) is more striking
and unmistakable, especially that of the hind-wing.
The fringe itself is dotted at intervals with black ; then
follows a line of crescent spots on a cream-coloured
ground ; a fulvous band scalloped with a black outline
traverses the wing, and on this band are dark spots
edged with red. Then there is a cream band with
black spots, and a broken-up band of fulvous spots
edged with black. There is cream again next the
body, with a few more black spots. The under side of
the upper wing is a light orange-brown, and cream
towards the tip, and bears a few black spots.

The caterpillar is black, with dark red between the
segments ; head and pro-legs red ; spines short,
crowded, black. The chrysalis is stout, yellowish-
grey, dotted with black, and is sometimes enclosed in a
loose web. The chrysalids I have reared always
adopted this mode of concealment and protection. I
have also been much impressed with the strong resem-
blance of the caterpillar to the flower-heads of the
Narrow-leaved Plantain, amongst which it lives. The
Isle of Wight appears to be the headquarters of the
species, and it is found in a few other localities on the
mainland. It appears in May and June.
5°

PLATE 10

1. Dark Green Fritillary (under side)

2. High Brown Fritillary (under side)

3. Small Pearl Bordered Fritillary

(under side)

4. Glanville Fritillary (under side)

5. Pearl Bordered Fritillary

(under side)

6. Heath Fritillary (under side)

The Comma

THE HEATH FRITILLAR Y (Mclit<ea Athalia], Plate V.,
Fig. 2. — There is more black, or dark brown, on the
upper surface of this species, hence the insect looks
darker in general aspect than any of the foregoing
Fritillaries. The under side, too (Plate X., Fig. 6), is
marked very like Cinxia, but the light bands on the
hind-wings are more of a yellow tint, and the line of
black spots through the central band are wanting ; the
veins are also more prominent and black. Altogether
it is not difficult, on comparing the two under sides, to
at once distinguish them.

It is also a rather local species, being confined to the
South of England and Ireland. Both caterpillar and
chrysalis are very like those of the last species ; the
spines, however, are rust-coloured. It feeds on Plantain.
The perfect insect is out from May to July.

THE COMMA BUTTERFLY (fanessa c - Album\
Plate V., Fig. 3. — The tatterdemalion of the family,
it looks, indeed, as if some hungry caterpillars had
been dining on its wings, and had been scared away in
the middle of the feast, leaving all sorts of rags and
tatters to attest their visit. The costal margin is the
only line left entire ; all the others are deeply scalloped
and indented. Two tails form the longest projections
from the middle of the outer edge of the hind-wings.
The ground colour is a uniform rusty red, varied with
black spots arranged in the same order as in other
species of this genus. There is a dark border round
the outer margin of both wings. The under side is
strikingly different from the upper, and looks extra-

51

The British Butterflies Described

ordinarily like a dry, withered leaf, the more so on
account of its ragged outline. In the middle of the
hind-wing is a very clear comma-shaped mark ; from
this the insect takes its name.

The caterpillar is yellowish on the back for the first
five segments, then white to the tail ; under side
brown. The spines are shorter than in others of this
group. It feeds on Hop, Elm, Gooseberry, Nettle,
Willow, and Sloe. The chrysalis is brown, with gilt
points. The butterfly appears in July and is rather
local, being found mostly in the Midlands and Wales.
It has been recorded for Scotland, but not of late years.

THE LARGE TORTOISESHELL BUTTERFLY (Vanessa
Polychloros), Plate V., Fig. 5. — The ground colour of
this handsome species is a tawny yellow, marked with
three large black patches along the costa of the fore-
wing ; between these patches the colour is somewhat
lighter. There are four other black spots occupying
the centre of the wing, which also has a black border
dotted with brown ; hind- wing tawny, with one black
patch on the upper margin, but not extending inward to
the body as a similar spot does in the next species
(Urtic*). The dark border is continued along this
wing, and is studded with blue spots edged with a paler
line. This species might be confused by the novice
with the next, but not if the two .were together for
comparison ; then the points in which they differ are
seen to be distinct and permanent. In Urtic* the light
ground between the costal blotches is yellow and the
outer spot blue-white ; there are only three black spots

Small Tortoiseshcll

in the centre of the wing, the largest one being con-
tinued down to the margin, which is not the case with
the corresponding spot in Polychloros. On the hind-
wing the black patch continues downward towards the
bottom angle and inwards to the body, whereas this
spot neither goes in nor down in Polychloros. Lastly,
the ground colour in Urtic<e is or a bright red, almost a
scarlet, with the blue spots extending into both wings.

The caterpillar of Polychloros is brown, spiny, and
striped along the back and sides ; it feeds on Elm,
Willow, and Cherry, during the summer months. The
butterfly appears in August.

It is by no means so common with us as its smaller
and gayer cousin, being confined mostly to the South
of England. There are occasional records for Scot-
land ; I was present when a specimen was captured by
a friend on the coast of Argyllshire in the year 1887.

THE SMALL TORTOISESHELL BUTTERFLY (Vanessa
Urtic<e\ Plate V., Fig. 4. — Among the many puzzling
problems that naturalists have to solve, few present
greater attractions than those relating to the migration
and hibernation of animals. The birds have long
claimed the attention of ornithologists in this respect,
but the insects have in a great measure been neglected.
However, there are signs of a revival. Migratory and
hibernating butterflies are well enough represented in
the British list to supply material for much patient and
useful research. The facts about them are not all
known — not by any means. We know, or fancy we do,
that the dominating factor in both cases is the food-
53

The British Butterflies Described

supply, but that there are other and important elements
to be considered is beyond dispute. The Small Tortoise-
shell is a hibernating species, but why does it not
deposit its eggs in the autumn, and go the way of all flesh
and butterflies? Could it not evolve a method of
securing its eggs so that the young caterpillars might
have a fair chance of survival when ushered into the
world ? Or has it found it easier and safer to take care
of these eggs itself during the long winter months,
and then, when returning spring once more brings
the Nettle-shoots above ground, launch forth upon the
wing once more, to seek and to find a home and a
larder for its numerous children to be ? What would
be the fate of these eggs if laid in the autumn ? Who can
tell ? Various enemies and agencies would be constantly
at work seeking to destroy them. The Nettles have all
died down and left hardly a trace behind. And what
the rain and wind had not scattered far and wide, the
ants and beetles would account for.

The Small Tortoiseshell is perhaps the best known of
all our coloured butterflies, occurring, as it does, all over
the country from Land's End to John o' Groats. It is
very like the last species, though smaller and brighter ;
but as I pointed out the various distinguishing marks in
describing Polychlorosy I need not go into them again.

The caterpillars feed in companies when young,
spreading themselves over the Nettles as they grow
older. They are black on the back with a checkered
double line along the sides ; across each segment is a
row of branched spines with numerous small simple
54

PLATE 11

1. Larva of Large Garden White

2. Pupa of Large Garden White

3. Ichneumon Cocoons [White

4. Dipterous Parasite of Large G.

5. Ichneumon Flies hatched from 3

6. Pupa of Small Tortoiseshell

7. Larva of Small Tortoiseshell

8. Larva and Pupa of Glanville

Fritillary

9. Larva of Greasy Fritillary

Peacock — Camberwell Beauty

hairs between. The chrysalis hangs by the tail ; it is
grey-brown, with gilt points. The eggs are laid in
May, and the butterfly appears towards the end of June,
and continues more or less abundant until October,
when the females retire to some safe corner in old walls
or outhouses, there to await the passing of the winter.

THE PEACOCK BUTTERFLY (Vanessa Ici)y Plate V.,
Fig. 7.— This beautiful species is too well known, and
too distinct in its colour and pattern to require any
written description.

Few butterflies possess a name which so aptly describes
them, and to make a mistake in its identification is
hardly possible. All its efforts seem to have been ex-
spended on the ornamentation of the upper surface, for
the under side has hardly an attractive note. Dark and
sombre though it be, it is well adapted for concealment
during its period of hibernation.

The caterpillar is black, with bands of white dots
round each segment, and the spines are larger than in
the Small Tortoiseshell. It feeds in batches on Nettles,
from June to August. The chrysalis inclines to green
and has burnished spots. This species is common in
England, and is occasionally met with in the South and
West of Scotland.

THE CAMBERWELL BEAUTY (Vanessa Antiopa^
Plate V., Fig. 6. — Why does not this handsome butter-
fly settle down amongst us, increase and multiply, and
thus swell the little band of real natives who gladden the
eye of the entomologist on his country rambles ? It
is a common insect over most of the Continent, and

55

The British Butterflies Described

most abundant in North America, well up into Canada,
where the winter is extremely severe. We have the
food-plant in abundance, yet it is questionable if ever the
Camberwell Beauty has been found in any but the
winged state in this country. Records there are of its
capture year after year, but there never seems to be
progeny left by these occasional visitors. The wings
are a dark chocolate-brown, bordered with creamy white.
Between the brown and the white is a broad black band
studded with blue spots ; there are also two white spots
on the costal margin near the tip of the fore-wing. It
measures from 2-J to 3^ inches in expanse, North
American specimens being the largest.

The caterpillar is black, with white dots, and has a
row of red spots along the back. The pro-legs are also
red, spines black. It feeds on the Willow. The
chrysalis is brown, with darker spots ; its abdominal
points are sharp and angular. Single 'specimens of
this species occur in most seasons from August to
October, generally in the South, but it has been recorded
for Scotland on several occasions.

THE RED ADMIRAL (Vanessa Atalanta]^ Plate VIII.,
Fig. i. — He must have been a poet who first conceived
so appropriate a name for this gallant rover. Possibly
he was living long ago —

" When Britons truly ruled the waves,
In good Queen Bess's glorious days,"

or later, when Nelson's old "wooden walls" spread
their bellying sails to catch the breeze. Those were
days of romance. Fancy the Admiral of a super-

56

PLATE 12.

^v^^p

1. Small Heath 7. Large Copper ' Male)

2. Green Hairstreak 8. Small Copper

3. Purple Hairstreak (Female) 9. Long-tailed Blue

4. White-letter Hairstreak 10. Silver-studded Blue (Male)

5. Black Hairstreak 11. Brown Argus

6. Brown Hairstreak (Female) 12. Common Blue (Male)

Red Admiral

Dreadnought — that big, black abortion of coal and iron
— being associated with a butterfly ! We would rather
peer into the future and elect our aerial commander the
" Red Admiral " of a fleet of graceful aeroplanes. This
would certainly be more appropriate.

The colours of this butterfly on the upper surface
are singularly bold, striking, and, withal, simple. They
furnish a good test of colour discrimination. I have
heard them spoken of as "jet black," " intense black,"
or "velvety black." If you take a specimen into a
good light, you will see that the whole area enclosed by
the scarlet bands is a deep coffee-brown, while outside
the band, on the fore-wing, the colour is black splashed
with white, and there is a blue streak near the outer
margin. The under side is a marvel of beauty too com-
plex and wonderful for cold print. Common though
this insect is all over our island from August to chill
October, who can say that he has discovered his " retreat
and hiding-place " from the storms and frosts of winter ?
Indeed, there are those who boldly assert that the Red
Admiral does not hibernate with us at all, and, con-
sequently, we are indebted each year for our supply to
spring visitors from the Continent, which may be the
reason why in some years it is more abundant than
in others.

The caterpillar is a powdery yellow-grey in colour,
sometimes inclining almost to black ; a line of white
spots appears on each side ; there are some darker mark-
ings along the back, and a row of branched spines light
in colour crosses the middle of each segment. You

B.B. 57 8

The British Butterflies Described

will generally find it hiding within a curled Nettle-leat
during the day. The chrysalis is grey, with a few
shining points.

THE PAINTED LADY (Vanessa cardui}, Plate VIII.,
Fig. 2, is quite a suitable companion for a " Red
Admiral," and they are often seen in company, although
cardui is the earlier on the wing by at least a fort-
night, and often a month. The ground colour of the
upper surface is a rosy orange, varied with black and
brown markings, while the white spots near the tip of
the fore-wing are almost similar to those of the Red
Admiral. Here, too, the under side is an exquisite bit
of painting. It reminds one of a frosted window done
in harmonious secondary colours. No doubt this
subtle pattern must be protective, for you will notice
that when the insect is at rest with the wings shut, the
bright portion of the under side of the fore-wing is con-
cealed. This is decidedly a migratory species, and it is
an open question whether it hibernates in Britain. In
Scotland we never see it until the autumn, and occa-
sionally it arrives in fair numbers. We had one extra-
ordinary swarm about the year 1880; I remember
being on holiday at the time on the Island of Cumbrae,
in the Firth of Clyde. Cardui was everywhere, and
even fighting for possession of the Thistle-tops. In
1911 I had to be content with the sight of two
specimens in Arran, but I heard of several more.

Like the other Vanessa caterpillars, the larva of
this species is thorny, brown, and bears lines and
spots of yellow. It may be found on Thistles and
c8

White Admiral — Purple Emperor

Nettles in May and June. The chrysalis is like that
of Atalanta in colour, but hardly so stout.

THE WHITE ADMIRAL (Limenitis Sibylla), Plate
VIII., Fig. 4. — This butterfly is almost black on the
upper surface, relieved by white bars and spots, and
there is a row of dense black spots near the outer
margin of the hind-wings. These white marks are
carried through the wings to the under side, but the
ground there is formed of various shades of brown, with
some black dots and pencillings — while on the under
surface of the body, and spreading out from it on to the
wings, is a considerable region of a light sky-blue tint,
very pleasing to the eye.

The caterpillar feeds on Honeysuckle, and is a lively
green ; the spines are reddish, those on the third,
fourth, and sixth segments being larger than the others.
There is also a white line bordered with brown along
each side. The head is also red, with two lines of white
down the face. The chrysalis is dark green, with
silvery dots and lines, and bears grotesquely swollen
lumps. This is a butterfly that I am afraid is becoming
scarcer year by year ; it is confined to the South. It
is out in July.

THE PURPLE EMPEROR (Apatura Ins\ Plate VIII.,
Fig- 5» is undoubtedly the king of the forest glade.
Wearing the regal purple, he looks down upon the
world from his lofty throne on the top of some lordly
oak. Somehow the build of this fine insect when seen
in the hand cannot fail to impress the beholder with a
sense of muscular power. The thorax is long, broad,
59

The British Butterflies Described

and deep — more so than in any other British butterfly —
and the abdomen, head, and antennae are in like pro-
portion. The wings are ample and in shape smart and
serviceable. No loose scales or fluffy hairs soften
the firm compactness of his whole bearing. Dark
brown and purple alternate with the changing light all
over the upper surface ; a dash or two of red, and one
eye-spot on the bottom angle of the hind-wing, with a
bar and a few spots of white, are the main additions to
the changing hues of the purple. The under side has a
daring lightning flash of blue-white on a brown and
olive ground on the hind- wing. The fore-wing (under
side) has various spots of black and white on a darker
ground, while there is also one eye-spot near the outer
angle. He is said to have a fondness for carrion, and
this queer taste is sometimes his undoing, as he is more
readily captured when indulging his appetite than when
soaring round the crown of some lofty oak.

But it is better still to seek for the caterpillars.
These may be found on low Sallows or Poplars. They
are green, dusted with white, and have oblique dashes
of yellow on the sides ; they taper considerably towards
the tail, while the head is adorned with a pair of horns.
The chrysalis is similarly coloured while alive, but
when its inhabitant is gone the colour vanishes with it,
and all that remains looks like a little bit of crumpled
tissue paper. It may be found suspended to the under
side of a leaf of the food-plant. The butterfly is out in
July in the southern counties, and is oftener seen than
captured.

60

Marbled White

THE MARBLED WHITE BUTTERFLY (Melanargia
Galathea\ Plate IX., Fig. i. — We now come to a group
of butterflies (the Satyrid*) quite the reverse in build
and habits from the Emperors and Admirals. Of
medium or small size, though the wings are ample, the
body is small and the muscular power is never great ;
hence they are soft and downy, never fly far at a
stretch, and are, although many of them common,
very local in their habits.

And the Marbled White is no exception to the group.
His name may suggest something hard, polished, and
durable, yet he is anything but that. I wonder what his
name might have been had he been common north of
the Tweed, and not known in the South ? To Sir Walter
Scott, James Hogg (the Ettrick Shepherd), or Professor
Blackie, the similarity of the black and white wings to
the checking and soft, embracing folds of their own
beloved tartan plaids would at once have appealed to
their imagination, and henceforth they would have
alluded to him as the " Shepherd's Plaid " butterfly.

Creamy-white, with grey and black checking, and ft
few eye-spots on the black band of the hind-wings
complete his simple scheme of colour. The under side
is somewhat similar to the upper. Although common
enough where it is found, it is a very local and stay-at-
home butterfly.

The caterpillar is a grass-feeder, and is green, with a
red head and tail. It tapers considerably towards both
extremities. They are very small when they hibernate.
The butterfly is out in July and August.
61

The British Butterflies Described

THE MOUNTAIN RINGLET BUTTERFLY (Erebia
Epiphrori), Plate IX., Fig 2. — It is strange that this
fragile little fellow should choose the rough mountain-
side for his home. In a boggy hollow of Ben Lomond,
nearly 2,000 feet above the sea, buried in snow almost
the whole winter through, I know a colony of this
butterfly which lives and flourishes under these seem-
ingly impossible conditions. Doubtless it could be
found on many more of our Highland hills.

The wings are a dark, fulvous brown, with an incon-
stant red bar near the outer edge of both wings, and on
this rusty bar are usually a few small eye-spots, some-
times absent, or reduced to mere specks. The under
side is almost similar. It is a very easily damaged
little creature, requiring great care in handling, and I
may add that in catching it is always advisable to care-
fully select your specimens on the ground, as quite a
large percentage always appear to be rubbed, so soon
do they become unfit for the cabinet even in the height
of their season, which occurs during the first fortnight
of July.

The caterpillar is said to be green, and feeds upon
various grasses. It is also found on the mountains of
Cumberland and Westmorland.

THE SCOTCH ARGUS BUTTERFLY (Erebia Mthiops],
Plate IX., Fig. 3. — Like all butterflies, the Scotch
Argus is seen at its best in its native haunts. You
feel it has a subtle kind of association with its sur-
roundings that defies definition. Seeing this species
flirting about in dozens in a dell where the air is heavily
62

Scotch Argus

laden with the perfume of Bog-myrtle and Honeysuckle,
and where dragon-flies, bees, hover-flies, wasps, and ants,
raise a drowsy hum dear to the ear of the entomologist,
not to mention the hordes of bloodthirsty little midges,
tends to the formation of a mental impression, which we
always associate with this beautiful butterfly. It takes
strange notions, too, at times. I have found it often
" at home " as described above, and, again, I have come
upon it solitary and alone on the bare hillside, far from
the madding colony amongst which it was born. Five
such wanderers I once encountered in a single day in
August. All were on the move, either seeking a lost
home or lover, or possibly pastures new.

The breeding ground is generally some sheltered
glade or open corner of a wood. The butterfly is
coloured a beautiful dark, velvety brown, with a broad,
irregular tawny red band near the outer margin of both
fore- and hind-wings. Within this band on the fore-
wings are three black spots, each having a tiny white
spot in its centre, and the hind-wings have in most
cases a similar adornment ; but as these spots are sub-
ject to great variation, always aim at securing a good
row for your cabinet in order to show as many varia-
tions as you can find.

The under sides of the sexes differ from each other
and are distinctive. In the female the under side of
the fore-wing is marked very much the same as the
upper side, but the whole colour scheme is lighter,
while the hind-wings are a lighter brown, with a pale
lavender band, distinctly iridescent and with just a

63

The British Butterflies Described

trace of spots. The male, though nearly the same in
markings, is very much darker.

The cate-rpillar is a grass-feeder, and is green, with
some lighter and darker stripes. It is very like the
grass it lives amongst. The eggs are laid in the
autumn, and the young caterpillars hibernate.

THE SPECKLED WOOD BUTTERFLY (Pararge jEgeria),
Plate IX., Fig. 4. — There must be something peculiar
about this butterfly, which always reminds me of a
snake ; it is curious how such an idea gets into one's
head and sticks there. I have a lot of preserved home
and foreign snakes, and not a few of them are checkered
and marked like this butterfly's wings ; one large skin
of a boa constrictor bears a remarkable resemblance
both in colour and spots. Nature seems to delight in
these eyelike markings — you will find them on the
trout, the peacock, the leopard, and on certain beetles,
flowers, and birds' eggs. Wherever you find them they
are always beautiful and interesting, and have a certain
protective use.

The Speckled Wood is more easily recognized than
described. The upper side is of a dull brown, spotted
with pale yellow, or (as in some northern specimens I
have taken) with white. There is one eye-spot near
the tip of the fore- "wing, and a row of three, sometimes
four, similar spots in a submarginal row on the hind
wings. The under side is richer and warmer in colour,
having a purple tinge, while the eye-spots of the hind-
wings are nearly obsolete, but the spot on the fore-wing
is, if anything, brighter. It is a fairly common species,

PLATE 13.

|

1. Adonis Blue (Male)

2. Chalk-hill Blue (Male)

3. Little Blue

4. Axure Blue

5. Large Blue

6 Duke of Burgundy Fritillary

7. C.riy/led Skipper

8. Dingy Skipper

9. Small Skipper

10. l.ulworth Skipper

11. Large Skipper (Female)

12. Pearl Skipper (Male)

13. Checkered Skipper

The British Butterflies Described

bolder in flight than any other of this group in our
country. But you must always remember that butter-
flies love the sunshine, and without its cheering presence
they are all very dull fellows indeed. Hence it is that
a butterfly may appear, and really is, difficult to catch
on a bright, warm day ; yet it may fall an easy victim,
and give but indifferent sport on a dull one. The
Grayling has a strong partiality for living near the sea,
and is found all along the west coast of Scotland,
whether it be on a rock-bound shore or in a sandy,
sheltered bay. During July and August one is pretty
sure to encounter the Grayling sporting along just
above high-water mark, and, not infrequently, whole
colonies of them. The lichen-covered rocks above the
shore are his favourite resting-place, and here he can
sit and bask in the sun, and once he has closed his
wings he may be said to have disappeared, so beautifully
does the under side of his wings blend with the colour
of the surrounding rocks. He shows a certain amount
of wisdom, too, at times, for if you make a stroke at
him with a net and miss, he is off to sea, flit-flitting
just above the water, and making a wide detour before
coming back to land.

The wings are brown, with an irregular light tawny
band, in which, on the fore-wing, are two eye- spots,
and on the hind-wing only one. But the finest orna-
mentation is on the under side of the hind-wings, which
bear a strong resemblance to a granite rock speckled
with lichens.

The caterpillar, I think, feeds mostly at night, as I
66

The Meadow Browns

have found it during the day under stones in hilly
districts near the sea. It is variable in colour — brownish
to black, with a few lighter lines on the back and sides,
and it has a dirty putty-colour on the under side. It
feeds on grass in May. The butterfly is out from
July to September. It appears in August in Scotland.

Plate IX., Fig. 7. — Perhaps this is the commonest of
all our brown butterflies. On roadside or hillside, moor
or meadow, one can hardly fail to notice this homely
brown insect all through the summer rambles. The
males are smaller and dingier than the females. They
have an obscure reddish patch on the fore-wing which,
with an eye-spot, relieves the upper surface of dark
brown. The females are brighter and often more
variable, the fulvous patch on their fore-wings being
large and bright, and even extending into a band on
the hind-wings. There is occasionally an inner patch
of suffused yellow on the centre of the fore-wings ; the
under side is a paler brown, with a decided band of
grey-brown on the hind-wing, which is also slightly
scalloped.

The caterpillar is a delicate green, with a white line
on either side, and may be swept from moorland grasses
in May and June. The chrysalis is short and dumpy ;
pale papery grey, rather fragile, and is hung up by the
tail to a grass-stem. The butterfly is out practically
all through the summer.

THE SMALL MEADOW BROWN (Epinephele Tithonus),
Plate IX., Fig. 8. — Also a common species, but does

The British Butterflies Described

not so range far north. Wings, a bright tawny red
inclining to yellow, bordered with dark brown, with an
indistinct diagonal bar across the wings in the male.
There is also a black spot near the tip of the fore-wings
containing two tiny white spots ; occasionally there are
two small eye-spots on the hind-wings also. The
under side of the hind-wing is shaded with red-brown
and pale ochre, and bears a few small white spots
surrounded by red rings. Under side of the upper
wing is pale tawny yellow with outer edge dark ; there
is a black spot at the tip with two white dots in it.

The caterpillar varies from green to grey-brown ;
there is a dark red line along the back, and two light
lines run along each side. It is a grass-feeder, and
prefers a drier situation than the last species. Perhaps
this is the reason for it being found in Ayrshire, the
driest and sandiest county in Scotland. July and
August arc the butterfly's months.

THE RINGLET BUTTERFLY (Epincphelc Hyperanthus),
Plate IX., Fig. 9. — This is a common and not very
attractive-looking butterfly. Its colours, if it can be
said to have any, are dingy in the extreme. The upper
surface is a dark sooty-brown hardly relieved by a few
faint eye-spots, which are very small and not always
present. A dirty white fringe completes the upper
side. The under side affords some compensation,
however, for here we have the ringlets in some variety
— pale yellow for the outer ring, which encloses black
with a white spot in the centre. They are arranged
three on the upper wing and five on the lower. They
68

Marsh Ringlet

vary in size, as will be seen from the figure (Plate XIV.,
Fig. 9). It is not a very lively insect ; it frequents
dry pasture-fields in Scotland, preferring those border-
ing the sea.

The caterpillar is like the last species, but a greener
grey ; it feeds on grasses. The butterfly is out in July.
When you do happen upon this species, keep a sharp
lookout for varieties, as it has quite a range of well-
known " sports " ; the variation is mostly on the under
surface.

THE MARSH RINGLET (Canonymfha Typhon\
Plate IX., Fig. 10. — This insect has to be sought for on
the swampy moorlands and mountains of the North. It
is of a dingy fawn-colour, sometimes brighter, often as
if it had been held over the fire and " Peat-reekit." It
is somewhat remarkable what a number of creatures
inhabiting this same region have gradually come to
assume a similar coloration. Many of the Highland
cattle on these moors have this dirty tawny-yellow tint ;
the deer and the hare find protection under the same
guise. The upper surface of the Marsh Ringlet is
varied with a few eye-spots, though I possess specimens
with no spots at all, while others have four on each of
the hind-wings and two on each of the fore-wings.
The under side is generally better marked by eyes, six
forming a row round the outer margin of each hind-
wing, of which the first and last are usually the largest ;
fore-wing under side — two eye-spots, the one nearest
the tip being the larger. There is also a light bar
across this wing, and this is continued on to the hind-

The British B utter flies Described

wing, where it broadens out and is irregular and often
interrupted. The ground colour here is a subdued
green-grey, getting lighter towards the fringe. Females
have more ample and rounded wings than the males.
I find the most comfortable way to hunt this butterfly
is with bare feet and legs, and the trousers well tucked
up, which will perhaps convey some idea of the nature
of the ground it loves to flit over. Splash, splash you
go over the Sphagnum and Cotton-grass, Heather and
Marsh Wortleberry, while overhead the eerie cries of
the curlew and the lapwing remind the naturalist that
there are many young families hidden amongst the
Heather, who will rejoice when they see the last of
him and that fearful net of his.

The caterpillar is green, with white lines, and feeds
on Cotton-grass in May. The butterfly appears towards
the end of June.

THE SMALL HEATH BUTTERFLY (Ctenonympha
Pamphilus), Plate XII., Fig. i. — This can be best
described as a smaller and brighter edition of Typhon ;
occasionally a large specimen may even be mistaken for
a small Typhon, but you can always tell the smaller
species by the presence of only one eye-spot on the tip
of the fore-wing, and no eye-spots anywhere else. Its
habits, too, are different, preferring, as it does, a much
drier and more pastoral country to sport over. And its
range is also wider, being found all over the country
from June till September.

The caterpillar is green and a grass-feeder. I have
swept it from grass in August.
70

Brown and White- Letter Hairstreaks

THE BROWN HAIRSTREAK (Theda betul<e\
Plate XII., Fig. 6. — There are five British species
included in the very distinct group of interesting little
butterflies, to which this species belongs. All of them
are nearly black on the upper surface, but the under-
sides are exceedingly chaste in pattern, if not showy
in colour. The Brown Hairstreak is the largest of the
five. The male is a dark brown relieved by a lighter
spot edged with black on the fore- wing, and the
bottom angle of the hind-wing and the little tails are
orange. The female has an orange bar across the fore-
wing. The under side (Plate XIV., Fig. 7) is a tawny
orange inclining to deep orange at the margins ; a
double white irregular line edged with black runs
across the hind-wings, and between these lines the
tawny shade is darker ; the fringe is white.

The caterpillar is green, marked with diagonal
yellow lines and tapers considerably towards each
extremity. It feeds on Birch and Blackthorn. Though
by no means a common insect, it is found in a great
many localities from North to South of England, but
not in Scotland. The butterfly is out in August.

THE WHITE-LETTER HAIRSTREAK (Theda w-
album\ Plate XII., Fig. 4. — A smaller and, on the
upper surface, a blacker insect than the last. Except-
ing for a small indistinct spot in the centre, and near
the outer margin of the fore-wing, the upper surface is
devoid of markings of any kind. The under side,
however, provides all the distinctive features necessary
for identification. The colour is a cool brown-grey, the
71

The British Butterflies Described

fore-wing being traversed by a white line ; the hind-
wing has a similar white line, which forms a W at the
basal angle ; under it is a broad orange scalloped band,
edged with black and white ; the extreme outer edge is
black, and this black edging scallops into the orange
band. Tail black.

The caterpillar feeds on Elm ; is pale green, with
yellow bars and two rows of whitish humps along the
back. It may be got by beating the Elm in early
summer. The Butterfly appears in July, but is far from
common, York being about its northern limit.

THE BLACK HAIRSTREAK (Theda pruni), Plate XII.,
Fig. 5. — About the same size as the last, but many
individuals are smaller. The ground colour is almost
black, but near the tail are two or three conspicuous
grange spots, which are not present in w-Album. The
orange band on the under side of the hind-wing is
much bolder and is edged with black spots on both
sides, the inner row of spots being partially ringed with
white ; the white hairstreaks are fainter and slightly
interrupted. This is the rarest of the group, and con-
fined to a few localities in the South and South-East.

The caterpillar is green, with yellow spots and lines ;
it is found on Sloe and Oak The perfect insect is
out in July.

THE PURPLE HAIRSTREAK (Theda quercus}>
Plate XII., Fig. 3. — The commonest and most widely
distributed of the Hairstreaks extending well into Scot-
land where, however, it is not common. The upper
surface in the male is shot with purple, while the female
72

PLATS

1. Pupa of Red Admiral

2. Larva of Red Admiral

3. Larva of Small White

4. New Small Skipper

5. Pupa of Small White (showing hole

through which ichneumons
emerged)

6. Larva of White Admiral

7. Brown Hairstreak (under side)

8. Purple Hairstreak (under side)

9. Ringlet (under side)

Green Hairstreak

has a patch on either fore-wing of a still more pro-
nounced sheen. The under side (Plate XIV., Fig. 8)
is a cool grey ; the " hairstreak " is white and
strongly denned by an inner edging of dark brown.
There are also two orange eye -spots near the tail,
which in this species is rather small.

The caterpillar is a reddish-brown and grey mixture,
with a lighter angular pattern along the back, and a
light line along the sides. It feeds on Oak.

I once came upon a small colony of this little butter-
fly flying round some Oak-trees in Argyllshire, but not
one of them came lower than 15 feet from the ground,
and after trying a variety of expedients I had to retire
discomfited without a single capture. A visit to the
same spot on subsequent days failed to reveal a single
specimen. August was the month. In the South it is
out in June.

THE GREEN HAIRSTREAK (ffhccla rubi), Plate XII.,
Fig. 2. — The smallest of the British Hairstreaks and a
fairly common species. Deep dingy brown above,
bright emerald-green below, traversed by white hair-
streaks, although in some specimens I have taken these
white lines are absent. An elusive little butterfly, as
when it settles amongst green herbage with the wings
closed it is rendered almost invisible, so well does it
harmonize with its surroundings.

The caterpillar is green, spotted and striped with
yellow ; it feeds on Bramble and Broom. The butter-
fly is out in June generally, but I have found it in the
closing days of May in a favourable season. In the

*.B, 73 JO

The British Butterflies Described

South a second brood appears in August. It reaches as
far north as Perthshire, and is frequently met with in
the West Highlands.

THE LARGE COPPER BUTTERFLY (Polyommatus
~Dispar\ Plate XII., Fig. 7. — I am afraid there is now
only one British locality where this fine butterfly can be
successfully pursued. Strange to say it is not one or
the few places where it was found so abundantly a
century ago. Neither is it any use going after it there
with a net, or any other of the usual appliances.

The correct place and method are no great secret,
being, as it is, in the very heart of London — to wit,
Stevens' Auction Rooms, King Street, Covent Garden.
A cheque-book there is a more reliable, and, if properly
handled, sure means of bringing a specimen into one's
collection. I don't suppose there is anybody now alive
who remembers having seen the Large Copper flitting
about its native Fen lands so long ago as 1850 or
thereabout, for the precise date is difficult to discover.
The Large Copper has become as extinct as the dodo
or the great auk. Fortunately, many specimens are
still to be seen in old and well-preserved collections,
and not a few of these have already passed through the
hands of the auctioneer. There are various Continental
" Coppers " which more or less resemble the " dear
departed," And it is as well that the points of differ-
ence should be well known, as these foreigners can be
had for a few pence. Dispar sells at as many pounds.

The male and female differ very much from each
other, the male being a clear scarlet copper tint, with
74

Small Copper

black margins and a small black spot in the centre of
the fore-wing. The female is larger and not so brilliant ;
the black marginal band on the fore-wing is broader, and
has a row of black spots in addition to the central black
spot. The hind-wings are much dingier, except for a
brighter band round the outer margin next the black
outline. It was out in July and August in the Fen
lands of the south-eastern counties. Various causes
have been assigned as the reason for its disappearance.
Draining of, and burning rubbish on, these wastes, and
the constant persecution the insect had to endure from
mercenary natives who, once they discovered there was
money in it — and the more money, doubtless, the scarcer
it became-^— all lent their quota of assistance towards
finally exterminating this fine butterfly.

THE SMALL COPPER BUTTERFLY (Polyommatus
Phl<eas\ Plate XII., Fig. 8. — Less in size but hardly
less brilliant in colour, the Small Copper is not likely to
share the fate of its larger relative. A lively, restless,
little imp it is, and has well earned the title of " the
flea," by which it is known in some districts.

As it is the " only Copper we possess now," a detailed
description is unnecessary, but I would direct the young
collector's attention to the fact that there are some nice
variations of this common little species apt to be over-
looked, perhaps the most striking being a white form,
and another and commoner one having a row of blue
spots on the upper surface of the hind-wings.

The caterpillar feeds on various species of Sorrel,
and is green with three red lines.
75

The British Butterflies Described

There are several broods in the year, but it is gener-
ally more abundant in the autumn. Found everywhere.

THE LONG-TAILED BLUE (Lyc<ena B*tica),Phte XII.,
Fig. 9. — While there is no doubt this lovely little blue
has been repeatedly taken on our shores, the fact re-
mains that we must still regard it as an occasional visitor
only. It may, and we all hope it will, yet be classed
amongst our resident fauna. From what we know of
it, it seems to have a more than usually wide range ; it is
recorded for Europe, Africa, Western Asia, East Indies,
and Australia. The male is a deep blue, with two black
spots just above the tails ; the female shows more
brown. The under side is quite different from that of
any of our native blues, being barred and spotted in
white, and two shades of fawn-brown, with two green
spots near the tail. A lookout for it may be kept all
along our south coast during July and August.

THE SILVER-STUDDED BLUE (Lyc<ena JEgon), Plate
XII., Fig. 10. — In all of the group to which this
insect belongs, numbering about ten species, the males
differ very much in colour, especially on the upper
surface, from the females. The males are nearly always
blue of various shades, and the females brown and blue
in varying proportions.

In JEgon, the male is a warm violet-blue, the outer
margins being bordered with black. The female is
brown shot with blue, which becomes more intense near
the outer margin of the hind-wings, where there is a
row of orange spots touching an outer row of black
spots ; but these two rows may be nearly or altogether

Brown Argus

absent. The under side (Plate XV., Fig. 4) is banded
with orange and black-spotted, the black spots being
ringed with white. The silver studs are on the outer
margin of the orange band, principally on the hind-
wings. This is a fairly abundant species all over
England on dry soils, and has been met with in Scot-
land. The caterpillar is green, sometimes brown, with a
darker line along the back and white lines on the sides.
It feeds on Clover, Vetch, Broom, and other leguminous
plants. The butterfly is out in July and August.

THE BROWN ARGUS (Lycana Astrarche\ Plate XII.,
Fig. 1 1. — Here is a "blue" in which both sexes are brown,
a rather unusual thing. In every other particular, how-
ever, it bears the family hall-mark. The upper surface
is dark brown, bordered with bright orange spots. The
under side (Plate XV., Fig. 6) is banded with orange
and spotted with black dots ringed with white. For
the Scotch variety, Artaxcrxesy these spots are solid
white, and there is in addition a white discoidal spot
on the upper side of the fore-wing. This variety
is local in Scotland, but fairly numerous where found,
generally near the sea, and plentiful all along the
Ayrshire coast in June and July. It is said to feed
on Helianthemum, but has probably many other food-
plants, such as the Hemlock Stork's-bill (Erodium
cicutarium}) which is common where it flies.

The caterpillar is green, with a darker line along the
back, and a pale line on each side; head black and
shining. There are many intermediate forms between
Artaxerxes and the type.

77

The British Butterflies Described

THE COMMON BLUE (Lyctna Icarus}, Plate XII.,
Fig. 12. — Known to everyone who sees anything at all
of the country. It is the blue butterfly, noticed even
by those who hardly know a butterfly from a bull-
frog.

An intelligent little chap he is, too, with an eye for
his own safety, as I once found when I had the oppor-
tunity of observing quite a number of them on a piece
of waste ground near the sea. The weather was dull
and threatening rain, and not a butterfly was on the
wing ; but I could see plenty of our common blue
friend hanging on, with closed wings, to the ends of
rushes, grass-stalks, and on thistle-tops ; but always
when I came within a step or two they adroitly changed
their position, putting whatever they were resting or
hanging on between us, just edging round the corner
as it were, so as to be out of sight. Apparently the
idea of Jlying away from an enemy was here considered
as too risky under the conditions which prevailed ; the
safest plan was to hide, so hide they did. It was the
funniest game of hide-and-seek I ever played. I have
since seen the small blue dragon-flics adopt the same
tactics on the rushes by the side of a pond. No wonder
this little fellow is so common. In the struggle for
existence he has shown himself able and well-fitted to
survive ; nevertheless I had a good time amongst them
that afternoon and boxed some fine varieties. The
male bears a warm shade of blue, and the female is
from nearly black to brown, with a blue blush spreading
from the body outwards, both wings being bordered

Clifden Blue

with a row of orange and black spots, often on a ground
of white. Sometimes, too, there is a discoidal black
spot edged with white ; but the females are very variable.
The under side (Plate XV., Fig. 5) has the charac-
teristic markings of the " blues," and, excepting that
the female is a little darker in ground colour, both
sexes are pretty much alike.

The caterpillar is green, with a dark line on the
back, and a light yellow line on each side ; it feeds
on Trefoil and Clover. The perfect insect is common
everywhere from June till August.

THE CLIFDEN BLUB, OR ADONIS BLUI (Lyctn*
Eellargu3\ Plate XIII., Fig. I. — It will be sufficient to
point out the specific characters of each of these blues
without going into minute detail, which would be
wearisome, even if it were possible (which it is not) to
paint in words what Nature has painted so admirably
on the butterflies' wings. The male Adonis is a brilliant
azure blue ; fringe, deep and white, and divided into
sections by black lines. Female, brown to nearly black,
with a row of orange and black spots round the base
of the hind-wing and sometimes continued faintly
into the fore-wing ; it is browner on the under side
than the male. Both resemble the Common Blue very
much, but the spots are scarcely so numerous or so
bold. The wings, however, are generally more ample,
those of the males being more rounded.

The caterpillar is green, with a darker line on the
back, and a yellow line on each side ; spotted with
orange on the back. This is a fairly common species
79

The British Butterflies Described

confined mostly to the South, where, being double-
brooded, it is out in June and August.

THE CHALK - HILL BLUE (Lyc<ena Corydon\
Plate XIII., Fig. 2. — A larger insect than the last, and
the male an extremely pale iridescent blue, which is
shaded off at the margins into a black border, with a
white fringe checked with black. Female, dark brown,
black and white checked fringe ; eye-spots nearly
obsolete along the margin of both wings. Under side
in male almost white, shading to pale green, blue next
the body on the fore-wing ; hind-wing, with a wash of
pale brown for the ground ; spots black, outlined with
white. A marginal row of orange spots is confined to
the hind- wing in the male, but extends to the fore-wing
in the female ; the ground colour of it, however, is a
pale fawn, which sets forth the eye-spots beautifully.

The caterpillar is green, striped on the back and sides
with yellow. A decidedly southern species, frequent-
ing the chalk downs of the South and the Isle of
Wight, or the limestone districts of the Midlands. It
is out in July and August.

THE AZURE BLUE OR HOLLY BLUE (Lyc<enaArgiolus\
Plate XIII., Fig. 4. — This is a very dainty little butter-
fly of a deep sky-blue, with rounded wings narrowly
fringed with white, ticked with black. The female has
a broad, irregular, black border, occasionally extending
well into the wing. But the under side (Plate XV.,
Fig. 3) marks a new departure, being of a very pale,
shimmering blue, with only a few small, black spots,
which form an incomplete row on fore- and hind-wings.
80

PLATE 15

1. Brown Argus (var. Artaxerxes)

2. Brown Argus (var. A rtaxerxes)

(under side)

3. Azure Blue (under side)

4. Silver-Studded Blue (under side)

5. Common Blue (under side)

6. Brown Argus (under side)

7. Mazarine Blue (upper side)

8. Mazarine Blue (under side)

9. Chalkhill Blue (under side)

10. Large Blue (under side)

11. Little Blue (under side)

Mazarine Blue — Little Blue

The caterpillar is green, with a dark line on the back,
and a black head. It feeds on the flowers of Holly, Ivy,
and Buckthorn.

Being double-brooded, the perfect insect appears first
in April and May, and again in August. It is gener-
ally distributed in England, though commonest in the
South ; not known to occur in Scotland.

THE MAZARINE BLVE(Lyc<ena semiargus\ Plate XV.,
Figs. 7 and 8. — Males, a very dark purple-blue — in
fact, this is our darkest " Blue," and shares the distinc-
tion with the Long-Tailed Blue of being extremely
scarce. Possibly those met with now are visitors from
the Continent. The blue deepens into a black border
at the margins ; fringe short and white. Female, a
uniform dark brown ; under side a pale buff colour,
with an irregular row of black spots edged with white.
There are no orange spots on this species. It is said
to feed on Thrift ; hence it is likeliest to be met with
near the coast during July. Good Continental speci-
mens can be purchased cheaply, or got by exchange.
And I hold it is better to fill in your row with these,
carefully labelling them to indicate their source, than to
have an empty space always staring you in the face.
Unless this species becomes more common, the average
collector's chance of capturing British specimens is
exceedingly remote.

THE LITTLE BLUE (Lye ana Minima), Plate XIII.,
Fig. 3. — The smallest of our butterflies, the average
expanse being only £ inch. Male, blackish-brown
dusted with blue towards the base of the wings.

B.B. 8 1 II

The British Butterflies Described

Female, solid brown ; under side (Plate XV., Fig. 1 1 )
a pale salmon, blue spotted as in Argiolus^ with black
outlined with white ; no orange spots on either sex.

The caterpillar is dull green, orange-striped on back
and sides. It feeds on Trefoils, etc. This species is
local, but common all over the British Isles, except in
the extreme North. It is one of our early species,
appearing in May and June.

THE LARGE BLUE (Lyc<ena Arion\ Plate XIII.,
Fig. 5. — This is the largest of our " Blues " and the
rarest of our really resident species, and although it
appears to be able to hold its own and maintain its
numbers fairly well, I would strongly urge collectors to
at least let all the " fair " and worn specimens retain
their liberty. Again and again I have seen specimens
set up and sent out in exchange that should never have
been taken. Of a dark blue colour, black-bordered,
Arion can always be recognized by the row of black
spots across the middle of the fore-wing ; they are
sometimes very large in size. There is occasionally a
row of black spots round both wings, just inside the
margin. The under side (Plate XV., Fig. 10) is a pale
grey, gradually shading into a bright blue-green next
the body, profusedly spotted with black in white rings.

The caterpillar, which feeds on Wild Thyme in the
spring, is dark rust-coloured. The butterfly is out
in July, and is found mostly in the extreme south-west
counties.

THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY FRITILLARY (Nemeobius
Lucina\ Plate XIII., Fig. 6. — Very like a diminutive
82

Grizzled Skipper

member of the Fritillary family, but it has no real con-
nection with it, and better still, it has a whole family
(Erycinid*) and genus to itself, being the only one of
its kind found in Europe. The upper surface is a
tawny orange, with dark brown checkerings, while a
row of marginal black spots runs round the outer
margins. The under side of the hind-wings has a
double row of pale, almost white, spots across the
centre, and black spots, similar to those on the upper
side, round the edge.

The caterpillar is short and tapering, pale brown
with a darker line on the back, and a lighter one on the
sides. It feeds on Primrose. This species is said to
be double-brooded in the South, out in June and again
in August as far north as Carlisle and the Lake
District. Note : the female has six perfect walking
legs, the male only four, the front pair being rudi-
mentary, as with many of the larger butterflies.

THE GRIZZLED SKIPPER (Syrichthus Mah<e)y
Plate XIII., Fig. 7. — The Skippers, of which there are
eight species in this country, are often referred to as
the connecting-link between the butterflies and moths,
and not without some justification. The antennae are
somewhat short, club-shaped, and hooked at the ex-
tremity. The head is large, and the antennae spring
from just above the eyes ; their base is thus wide apart.
Compare a Skipper with a Blue in which the roots of
the antennae almost touch. The body of the Skipper
is stout and mothlike, and the wings not so ample,
and more angular than in the average butterfly. The

83

The British Butterflies Described

caterpillars live in a rolled leaf or several leaves spun
together, and pupate in a slight cocoon.

The Grizzled Skipper is a small butterfly measuring
just over £ of an inch in expanse. The ground colour
is nearly black, checkered with white square spots, as is
also the fringe. The under side is lighter.

The caterpillar is a rusty brown, with lighter lines on
the back and sides. The species is doubled- brooded,
appearing in May and August, and is generally dis-
tributed over the country as far north as the South-
West of Scotland.

THE DINGY SKIPPER (Nisoniades Tager), Plate XIIL,
Fig. 8. — This is dull grey-brown, and very Quaker-
like in its sombre garb, with a lighter and a darker
band across the wings. The under side is a pale drab,
with a few faint light spots. And truly one may be ex-
cused if at times it is mistaken for a night-flying moth.

The caterpillar feeds on trefoil, and is green, with
four yellow lines and some black dots ; it is very stout
in the middle, tapering to either end. This Skipper is
also doubled-brooded, appearing in May and August,
generally on dry soils such as the chalk, or limestone,
or, as in Scotland, on the sand-dunes of Ayrshire, where
it is locally common.

THE SMALL SKIPPER (Hesperia Thaumas\ Plate
XIIL, Fig. 9. — Upper side a uniform tawny-orange
shade, with a dark brown or black border. There is
also a black dash acre 3S the fore-wing of the male, which
is absent in the female. On the under side there is a
tawny patch along the inner margin of the hind- wing,
84 '

New Small Skipper — Lulworth Skipper

and the tip of the fore-wing is light. These are good
identification points, as they are fairly stable.

The caterpillar is green, with two white lines on the
back and a yellow line on either side. It feeds on
grasses in the spring. The butterfly appears in July and
is common in England, but is not known in Scotland.

THE NEW SMALL SKIPPER (Hesperia Lineola),
Plate XIV., Fig. 4. — Is very like the last, so much so,
that it had been taken for many years by collectors and
confused with Thaumas There were few collections
that did not possess a mixed series. But once its iden-
tity was established, it was soon placed in its rightful
position. It may be distinguished from Thaumas by
the absence of the fulvous patch on the inner margin of
the under side of the hind- wings, and also by the absence
of the light tip on the under side of the fore-wing. The
black dash across the upper side of the fore-wing of the
male is fainter, shorter, and more often altogether
absent. The under side of the hind-wing is a light buff
without marks of any kind.

The caterpillar is a bronze-green, with four yellow lines
on the back and one on the sides ; it feeds on grasses in
damp meadows, mostly in the south and south-eastern
counties. The species is local, but common where it
occurs. Out in July and August.

THE LULWORTH SKIPPER (Hesperia Act<eon\
Plate XIII., Fig. 10. — An extremely local species, being
only found in two or three localities on the south coast.
It may be distinguished from the two preceding Skippers,
first, by its more dingy colour ; second, by the female •
85

The British Butterflies Described

having a semicircular row of light spots near the tip of
the fore-wing. These are very faintly visible in some
males, but they have, in addition, a black streak along
the centre of the wing. The under side in both sexes
is similar, a pale dingy fawn, with no particular mark-
ings. The antennae are very short.

The caterpillar is green, with a dark line on the back,
and a double line of yellow on each side. This species
may be looked for on rough ground facing the sea
during July and August.

THE LARGE SKIPPER (Hesperia Sylvanus\ Plate
XIII., Fig. ii. — Upper surface tawny-orange shading
into darker at the margin of both wings ; on this dark
margin are a few pale spots, mostly at the tip of the
fore-wing. The male has an almost black streak near
the centre of the fore-wing ; this is not present in the
female. The under side is a light tawny olive, with
pale lighter spots.

The caterpillar is green, with a dark line on the back,
and a light stripe on the sides. It is a grass-feeder.
This Skipper is abundant all over England in May and
again in August, but is rare in Scotland.

THE PEARL SKIPPER (Hesperia Comma), Plate XIII.,
Fig. 12. — This species is not quite so large as the last.
It is darker, and the spot markings are much brighter
and more decided. This is the case especially on the
under side, as there the spots are bright enough to
suggest pearls. Hence the name.

Note, too, the dark streak in the middle of the fore-
wing of the male ; it is divided along the centre by a
86

Checkered Skipper — Milkweed

white line. This white line is wanting in the Large
Skipper. The dark streak is only on the upper wings
of the males. Comma is also a more local and scarce
insect, being confined mostly to the South of England.

The caterpillar is greyish-red, and has a double dark
line on either side ; it feeds on various Vetches and
Trefoils. The butterfly is out in July and August.

THE CHECKERED SKIPPER (Carterocephalus Pal<emon\
Plate XIII., Fig. 1 3. — The upper side of this butterfly is
speckled and bordered with tawny-orange spots on a dark
brown ground. The under side has a lighter ground
colour, and the spots are outlined with dark brown.

The caterpillar is dark, almost black, with a yellow
line on the sides, and, as it hibernates over the winter,
may be looked for in the spring. It feeds on grasses
and Plantain.

This is a very local species, and I am afraid, to judge
from reports, becoming rarer. The south and south-
eastern counties are the favoured localities.

THE MILKWEED BUTTERFLY (Danais Erippus ;
variety, Archippus), Plate VIII., Fig. 3. — This is an
American species, but an occasional visitor to our
shores, and, as it is a strong- flying species with the
bump of adventure abnormally developed, it is now
met with in many lands where it was at one time
unknown. I have large fine specimens from Canada,
so it can stand the rigours of the Canadian winter ; and
if it should find a suitable food-plant for the caterpillars
here, we may hope, in the near future, to add this fine
butterfly to the select little band of British butterflies.
8?

INDEX

BRITISH Butterflies described, 29

SPECIES OF BUTTERFLIES— continued :

Butterflies, antennas of, i, 10

Camberwell Beauty, 55

capture and preservation, 13

Clouded Yellow, 39

eyes of, n

Pale, 38

how to kill, 16

Comma, 51

list of British, 27

Copper, Large, 74

sense and smell, 10
sight, 10

Small, 75
Fritillarjr, Duke of Burgundy, 82

tongues of, 12

Dark^Green, 44

Butterfly net, 14

Glanville, 49

Greasy, 48

Collection, storing of, 25

Heath, 51

Drying-case, 22

High Brown, 46
Pearl-bordered, 43

Entomological pins, 17

Queen of Spain, 44
Silver- washed, 47

FAMILIES OF BUTTERFLIES.
Apaturida, 28
Erycinida, 29

Small Pearl-bordered, 42
Grayling, 65
Hairstreak, Black, 72
Brown, 71

Hesperida, 29

Green, 73

Lycenidce, 28

Purple, 72

Nymphalidae, 27
Papilionida, 27
Pieridte, 27

White-letter, 71
Meadow Brown, 67
Small, 67

Satyridce, 28

Milkweed, 87

"Grease," treatment of, 17

Orange-tip, 37
Painted Lady, 58

Ichneumons, 5

Purple Emperor, 59
Red Admiral, 56

Larvas, preservation of, 22
Lepidoptera, i
Life-story of Butterflies, i

Ringlet, 68
Marsh, 69
Mountain, 62

Scotch Argus, 62

Pins, entomological, 17

Skipper, Checkered, 87

Dingy, 84

Scales, 9

Grizzled, 83

Setting boards, 18

Large, 86

bristle, x8

Lul worth, 85

needle, 19 —

New Small, 85

Paisley method, 20

Pearl, 86

with braces, 18

Small, 84

SPECIES OF BUTTERFLIES :

Small Heath, 70

Blue, Adonis, 79

Speckled Wood, 64

Azure, 80

Swallow Tail, 29

Chalkhill, 80

Tortoiseshell, Large, 52

Clifden, 79

Small, 53

Common, 78

Wall Brown, 65

Holly, 80

White Admiral, 59

Large, 82

Bath, 36

Little, 81

Black-veined, 32

Long-tailed, 76

Green- veined, 35

Mazarine, 81

Large Garden, 33

Silver-studded, 76

Marbled, 61

Brimstone, 41
Brown Argus, 77

Small Garden, 34
Wood, 38

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