Chapter IV: Books About North American Butterflies (5)

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_Butterfly._--Fulvous, marked with yellowish toward the outer margins, the dark markings upon which are not as heavy as in the other species of the genus. On the under side the wings are paler than is the case in other species, reddish-brown, marbled with darker brown lines and frecklings. Expanse, 1.75-2.00 inches.

The caterpillar, which feeds upon _Azalea occidentalis_, is described and figured by Edwards in "The Butterflies of North America," vol. i. _Zephyrus_ is found throughout the region of the Rocky Mountains, from Colorado to California, and from Oregon to New Mexico.

(7) =Grapta gracilis=, Grote and Robinson, Plate XIX, Fig. 10, ♂; Fig. 11, ♀, _under side_ (The Graceful Angle-wing).

_Butterfly._--A small species, rather heavily marked with dark brown or blackish on the upper side. The wings on the under side are very dark, crossed about the middle by a pale-gray or white band shading off toward the outer margins. This light band serves as a means of easily identifying the species. Expanse, 1.75 inch.

The early stages are unknown.

The species has been found on the White Mountains in New Hampshire, in Maine, Canada, and British America, as far west as Alaska.

(8) =Grapta silenus=, Edwards, Plate XIX, Fig. 5, ♂; Fig. 6, ♀, _under side_ (Silenus).

_Butterfly._--Larger than _gracilis_, and the wings more deeply excised, as in _faunus_. On the under side the wings are very dark, with lighter irrorations, especially on the fore wings. Expanse, 2.00-2.30 inches.

The early stages have never been studied. This species appears to be found only in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.

(9) =Grapta progne=, Cramer, Plate XX, Fig. 3, ♂; Fig. 4, ♂, _under side_; Plate III, Fig. 31, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 32, 37, 38, _chrysalis_ (Progne).

_Butterfly._--A rather small species, with light-fulvous fore wings, shading into yellow toward the outer margins; the dark markings slight, but deep in color. The secondaries are heavily bordered with black on the outer margin. On the under side the wings are very dark, variegated with paler shades, somewhat as in _G. gracilis_. Expanse, 1.85-2.00 inches.

The early stages have been quite fully described by various authors, and the reader may consult "The Butterflies of New England," vol. i, pp. 266-268, for a full account. The caterpillar feeds on the elm, but more commonly on various species of the _Grossulaceæ_, or currant tribe, wild or domesticated. It ranges from Siberia to Nova Scotia, and southward as far as Pennsylvania.

There are several other species of _Grapta_ found in our fauna, which are not delineated in this book; but they are rare species, of which little is as yet known. The types are in the collection of the writer, and if the reader finds any species which he cannot identify by means of this book the author will be pleased to help him to the full extent of his ability.

Genus VANESSA, Fabricius

(The Tortoise-shells)

_Butterfly._--Medium-sized insects, the wings on the upper side generally some shade of black or brown, marked with red, yellow, or orange. The head is moderately large, the eyes hairy, the palpi more or less heavily scaled, the prothoracic legs feeble and hairy. The lower discocellular vein of the fore wings, when present, unites with the third median nervule, not at its origin, but beyond on the curve. The cell of the primaries may or may not be closed. The cell of the secondaries is open. The fore wings have the outer margin more or less deeply excavated between the extremities of the upper radial and the first median, at which points the wings are rather strongly produced. The hind wings have the outer margin denticulate, strongly produced at the extremity of the third median nervule.

_Egg._--Short, ovoid, broad at the base, tapering toward the summit, which is broad and adorned with a few narrow, quite high longitudinal ridges, increasing in height toward the apex. Between these ribs are a few delicate cross-lines. They are generally laid in large clusters upon twigs of the food-plant.

_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar moults four times. In the mature form it is cylindrical, the segments adorned with long, branching spines arranged in longitudinal rows; the spines much longer, and branching rather than beset with bristles, as in the genus _Grapta_. It lives upon elms, willows, and poplars.

_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis in general appearance is not unlike the chrysalis of _Grapta_.

The genus is mainly restricted to the north temperate zone and the mountain regions of tropical lands adjacent thereto. The insects hibernate in the imago form, and are among the first butterflies to take wing in the springtime.

(1) =Vanessa j-album=, Boisduval and Leconte, Plate XIX, Fig. 9, ♀ (The Compton Tortoise).

_Butterfly._--No description is required, as the figure in the plate will enable it to be immediately recognized. On the under side of the wings it resembles in color the species of the genus _Grapta_, from which the straight edge of the inner margin of the primaries at once distinguishes it. It is a very close ally of the European _V. vau-album_. Expanse, 2.60-2.75 inches.

The caterpillar feeds upon various species of willow. It is a Northern form, being found in Pennsylvania upon the summits of the Alleghanies, and thence north to Labrador on the east and Alaska on the west. It is always a rather scarce insect.

(2) =Vanessa californica=, Boisduval, Plate XX, Fig. 11, ♂ (The California Tortoise-shell).

_Butterfly._--On the upper side deep fulvous, mottled with yellow, spotted and bordered with black. On the under side dark brown; pale on the outer half of the primaries, the entire surface marked with dark lines and fine striæ. Expanse, 2.00-2.25 inches.

_Early Stages._--The larva and chrysalis have been described by Henry Edwards in the "Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences," vol. v, p. 171. The caterpillar feeds upon _Ceanothus thyrsiflorus_.

This insect is a close ally of the European _V. xanthomelas_. It ranges from Colorado to California and as far north as Oregon.

(3) =Vanessa milberti=, Godart, Plate XX, Fig. 10, ♂; Plate III, Fig. 36, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 43, 49, 50, _chrysalis_ (Milbert's Tortoise-shell).

_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished by the broad yellow submarginal band on both wings, shaded outwardly by red. It is nearly related to the European _V. urticæ_. Expanse, 1.75 inch.

The life-history has been worked out and described by numerous writers. The caterpillars feed upon the nettle (_Urtica_).

This pretty little fly ranges from the mountains of West Virginia northward to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, thence westward to the Pacific.

(4) =Vanessa antiopa=, Linnæus, Plate I, Fig. 6, ♀; Plate III, Fig. 28, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 51, 58, 59, _chrysalis_ (The Mourning-cloak; The Camberwell Beauty).

_Butterfly._--This familiar insect needs no description. It is well known to every boy in the north temperate zone. It is one of the commonest as well as one of the most beautiful species of the tribe. A rare aberration in which the yellow border invades the wing nearly to the middle, obliterating the blue spots, is sometimes found. The author has a fine example of this "freak."

The eggs are laid in clusters upon the twigs of the food-plant in spring (see p. 5, Fig. 11). There are at least two broods in the Northern States. The caterpillars feed on willows, elms, and various species of the genus _Populus_.

Genus PYRAMEIS, Doubleday

_Butterfly._--The wings in their neuration approach closely to the preceding genus, but are not angulate, and the ornamentation of the under side tends to become ocellate, or marked by eye-like spots, and in many of the species is ocellate.

_Egg._--The egg is broadly ovoid, being much like the egg of the genus _Vanessa_.

_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar in its mature form is covered with spines, but these are not relatively as large as in _Vanessa_, and are not as distinctly branching.

_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis approaches in outline the chrysalis of the preceding genus, and is only differentiated by minor structural peculiarities.

The genus includes only a few species, but some of them have a wide range, _Pyrameis cardui_ being almost cosmopolitan, and having a wider distribution than any other known butterfly.

(1) =Pyrameis atalanta=, Linnæus, Plate XLIII, Fig. 4, ♂; Plate III, Fig. 35, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 52, 53, 55, _chrysalis_ (The Red Admiral).

This familiar butterfly, which is found throughout North America, Europe, northern Asia, and Africa, needs no description beyond what is furnished in the plates. Expanse, 2.00 inches. The food-plants are _Humulus_, _Boehmeria_, and _Urtica_.

(2) =Pyrameis huntera=, Plate I, Fig. 2, ♂; Plate XXXIII, Fig. 6, ♂, _under side_; Plate III, Fig. 34, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 54, 63, 64, _chrysalis_ (Hunter's Butterfly).

_Butterfly._--Marked much like the following species, but easily distinguished at a glance by the two large eye-like spots on the under side of the hind wings. Expanse, 2.00 inches.

_Early Stages._--These have been frequently described, and are in part well depicted in Plates III and IV. The food-plants are cudweed (_Gnaphalium_) and _Antennaria_.

Hunter's Butterfly ranges from Nova Scotia to Mexico and Central America east of the Sierras.

(3) =Pyrameis cardui=, Linnæus, Plate I, Fig. 1, ♂; Plate III, Fig. 37, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 60-62, _chrysalis_ (The Painted Lady; The Thistle-butterfly).

_Butterfly._--This is undoubtedly the most widely distributed of all known butterflies, being found in almost all parts of the temperate regions of the earth and in many tropical lands in both hemispheres. It is easily distinguished from the preceding species by the more numerous and much smaller eye-like spots on the under side of the hind wings. Expanse, 2.00-2.25 inches.

_Early Stages._--These have been again and again described at great length and with minute particularity by a score of authors. The food-plants of the caterpillar are thistles (_Carduus_), _Urtica_, _Cnicus_, and _Althæa_.

(4) =Pyrameis caryæ=, Hübner, Plate XX, Fig. 12, ♂ (The West Coast Lady).

_Butterfly._--This species is easily distinguished from _P. cardui_, its nearest ally, by the absence of the roseate tint peculiar to that species, the tawnier ground-color of the upper surfaces, and the complete black band which crosses the middle of the cell of the primaries. Expanse, 2.00 inches.

_Early Stages._--These have not all been thoroughly described, but we have an account of the larva and chrysalis from the pen of Henry Edwards, in the "Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences," vol. v, p. 329. The food-plant of the caterpillar is _Lavatera assurgentiflora_. This species ranges from Vancouver's Island to Argentina, and is found as far east as Utah.

WIDELY DISTRIBUTED BUTTERFLIES

The primal curse declared that the earth, because of man's sin, should bring forth thorns and thistles, and thistles are almost everywhere. Wherever thistles grow, there is found the thistle-butterfly, or the "Painted Lady," as English collectors are in the habit of calling it, _Pyrameis cardui_. All over Europe, all over North America, in Africa,--save in the dense jungles of the Congo,--throughout South America, in far-off Australia, and in many of the islands of the sea this beautiful butterfly is found. At some times it is scarce, and then again there are seasons when it fairly swarms, every thistle-top having one of the gaily colored creatures seated upon its head, and among the thorny environment of the leaves being found the web which the caterpillar weaves. Another butterfly which bids fair ultimately to take possession of the earth is our own _Anosia plexippus_, the wanderings of which have already been alluded to.

Many species are found in the arctic regions both of the Old World and the New. Obscure forms are these, and lowly in their organization, survivors of the ice-age, hovering on the borderline of eternal frost, and pointing to the long-distant time when the great land-masses about the northern pole were knit together, as geologists teach us.

One of the curious phenomena in the distribution of butterflies is the fact that in Florida we find _Hypolimnas misippus_, a species which is exceedingly common in Africa and in the Indo-Malayan subregion. Another curious phenomenon of a like character is the presence in the Canary Islands of a _Pyrameis_, which appears to be only a subvariety of the well-known _Pyrameis indica_, which is common in India, southern China, and Japan. Away off in southeastern Africa, upon the peaks and foot-hills which surround the huge volcanic masses of Kilima-Njaro, Kenia, and Ruwenzori, was discovered by the martyred Bishop Hannington a beautiful species of _Argynnis_, representing a genus nowhere else found upon the continent of Africa south of Mediterranean lands. Strange isolation this for a butterfly claiming kin to the fritillaries that sip the sweets from clover-blossoms in the Bernese Oberland, in the valleys of Thibet, and on the prairies of the United States.

Genus JUNONIA, Hübner

(Peacock Butterflies)

_Butterfly._--Medium-sized butterflies, with eye-like spots upon the upper wings. Their neuration is very much like that of the butterflies belonging to the genus _Pyrameis_, to which they are closely allied. The eyes are naked, the fore feet are scantily clothed with hair, and the lower discocellular vein of the fore wing, when present, does not terminate on the arch of the third median nervule before its origin, as in the genus _Vanessa_, but immediately at the origin of the third median nervule.

_Egg._--Broader than high, the top flattened, marked by ten vertical ribs, very narrow, but not very high. Between the ribs are a few delicate cross-lines.

_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar is cylindrical, the segments being adorned with rows of branching spines and longitudinally striped.

_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is arched on the dorsal surface and marked by two rows of dorsal tubercles, concave on the ventral side. The head is slightly bifid, with the vertices rounded.

There are eighteen or more species which belong to this genus, of which some are neotropical, but the greater number are found in the tropical regions of the Old World. Three forms occur within the limits of the United States, which have by some authors been reckoned as distinct species, and by others are regarded merely as varietal forms.

(1) =Junonia coenia=, Hübner, Plate XX, Fig. 7, ♀; Plate III, Figs. 29, 30, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 56, 57, 65-67, _chrysalis_ (The Buckeye).

_Butterfly._--The figure in the plate is far better than any verbal description. On the under side the eye-like spots of the upper side are reproduced, but are much smaller, especially on the hind wings. There is much variety in the ground-color of the wings on the under side. Some specimens are reddish-gray, and some are quite heavily and solidly pinkish-red on the secondaries. Expanse, 2.00-2.25 inches.

_Egg._--The egg is dark green.

_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar is dark in color, longitudinally striped, and adorned with branching spines, two of which are on the head and point forward.

_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is generally pale wood-brown, strongly arched on the dorsal and concave on the ventral side. It always hangs at less than a right angle to the surface from which it depends.

This is a very common butterfly in the Southern States, ranging northward as far as New England, westward to the Pacific, and southward to Colombia. The caterpillar feeds on various species of plantain (_Plantago_), also _Gerardia_ and _Antirrhinum_. When I was a lad in western North Carolina these insects fairly swarmed one summer; thousands of the caterpillars could be found in worn-out fields, feeding on the narrow-leaved plantain, and every fence-rail had one or more of their chrysalids hanging from the under side. I have never seen such multitudes of this species since then. The butterflies are quite pugnacious, and will fight with other passing butterflies, dashing forth upon them, and chasing them away.

(2) =Junonia lavinia=, Cramer, Plate XX, Fig. 8, ♂ (Lavinia).

_Butterfly._--This species may be distinguished by the more rounded apex and the more deeply excavated outer margin of the fore wings, and also by the decided elongation of the outer margin of the hind wings at the end of the submedian vein. The wings are paler on the upper side than in the preceding species, and the eye-like spots much smaller. Expanse, 2.00 inches.

The early stages are not accurately known. The insect is common in the Antilles and South America, but is only now and then taken in the extreme southern parts of Texas.

(3) =Junonia genoveva=, Cramer, Plate XX, Fig. 9, ♂ (Genoveva).

_Butterfly._--Much darker above than either of the two preceding species. The transverse subapical band is pale yellow, almost white; the ocelli of the wings are more as in _lavinia_ than in _coenia_. Expanse, about 2.00 inches.

This form, if found at all in our fauna, is confined to the extreme South. I have seen and possess some specimens reputed to have come from Texas. The specimen figured in the plate was taken in Jamaica, where this form is prevalent.

Genus ANARTIA, Doubleday

_Butterfly._--The head is small; the eyes are round and prominent; the tongue is long; the antennæ are relatively long, having the club short, compressed, and pointed. The palpi have the second joint thick, the third joint gradually tapering and lightly clothed with scales. The fore wings are rounded at the apex, and have the outer and inner margins somewhat excavated. The outer margin of the hind wings is sinuous, produced at the end of the third median nervule. The cell of the hind wing is open. The subcostal nervules in the fore wing are remarkable because of the tendency of the first and second to fuse with the costal vein. The prothoracic feet of the male are small and weak; of the female, stronger.

_Early Stages._--These, so far as is known to the writer, await description.

There are four species belonging to this genus, only one of which is found within the limits of the United States. The others are found in Central and South America.

(1) =Anartia jatrophæ=, Linnæus, Plate XX, Fig. 13, ♂ (The White Peacock).

_Butterfly._--There can be no mistake made in the identification of this species if the figure we give is consulted. The male and female are much alike. Expanse, 1.75-2.00 inches.

_Early Stages._--So far as is known to me, these have never been described. The butterfly is common throughout the tropics of the New World, and is occasionally found in southern Texas and Florida.

Genus HYPANARTIA, Hübner

(The Banded Reds)

_Butterfly._--The palpi of medium size, well clothed with scales; the second joint moderately thick; the third very little thinner, blunt at the tip. The antennæ have a distinct, short, well-rounded club. The fore wings have the first two subcostal nervules arising before the end of the cell, close to each other. The third subcostal arises midway between the end of the cell and the origin of the fourth subcostal. The cell of the fore wing is closed by a stout lower discocellular vein which is more or less continuous with the third median nervule. The hind wing has the cell open or only partially closed.

_Early Stages._--But little is known of the early stages of this genus.

The species reckoned as belonging to _Hypanartia_ number less than a dozen, most of which are found in tropical America, but, singularly enough, two species occur in tropical and southern Africa, and another has been described from Madagascar.

(1) =Hypanartia lethe=, Fabricius, Plate XXIV, Fig. 10, ♂ (Lethe).

This very handsome insect, which is quite common in tropical America, is another straggler into our fauna, being occasionally found in southern Texas. But little is known of its early life-history. Expanse, 2.00 inches.

Genus EUNICA, Hübner

(The Violet-wings)

_Butterfly._--The head is narrow, hairy; the eyes prominent. The antennæ are long and slender, having a greatly enlarged club marked with two grooves. The palpi have the third joint in the case of the female longer than in the case of the male. They are relatively short, thickly clothed with hairs and scales lying closely appressed to the surface. The fore wing has the costal and median vein enlarged and swollen at the base. The subcostal has five nervules, the first two of which arise before the end of the cell, the third midway between the end of the cell and the fourth nervule. The upper discocellular vein is wanting; the middle discocellular vein is bent inwardly; the lower discocellular vein is somewhat weak and joins the median vein exactly at the origin of the second median nervule. The cell of the hind wing is lightly closed.

_Early Stages._--Very little is known of the early stages of this genus.

The butterflies are characterized by the dark-brown or black ground-color of the upper side, generally glossed with rich blue or purple. On the under side the markings are exceedingly variable and in most cases very beautiful. The genus is characteristic of the neotropical fauna, and there are over sixty species which have been described. The males are said by Bates, to whom we are indebted for most of our knowledge of these insects, to have the habit of congregating about noon and in the early afternoon in moist places by the banks of streams, returning toward nightfall to the haunts of the females. In this respect they resemble club-men, who at the same hours are generally to be found congregating where there is something to drink. Only two species are found in our region, and are confined to the hottest parts of Texas and Florida, ranging thence southward over the Antilles and Central America as far as Bolivia.

(1) =Eunica monima=, Cramer, Plate XXI, Fig. 7, ♂; Fig. 8, ♀ (The Dingy Purple-wing).

_Butterfly._--This obscure little butterfly represents in Florida and Texas the great genus to which it belongs, and gives but a feeble idea of the splendid character of its congeners, among which are some exceedingly beautiful insects. Nothing is known of its life-history. It is common in the Antilles and Mexico.

Another species of the genus, _Eunica tatila_, has recently been reported from the extreme southern portion of Florida.

Genus CYSTINEURA, Boisduval

"And here and yonder a flaky butterfly
Was doubting in the air."

MCDONALD.

_Butterfly._--Small butterflies, with elongated fore wings, the hind wings with the outer margin rounded, slightly crenulate. The head is small; the palpi are very delicate and thin, scantily clothed with scales. The costal vein of the fore wing is much swollen near the base. The subcostal vein of this wing sends forth two branches before the end of the cell. The upper discocellular vein is lacking; the middle discocellular is short and bent inwardly; the lower discocellular is almost obliterated, and reaches the median vein at the origin of the second median nervule. In the hind wing the cell is open, and the two radial veins spring from the same point.

_Early Stages._--Very little is as yet definitely ascertained as to these.

But one species is found within the limits covered by this work. Seven species have been described, all of them inhabiting Central or South America.

(1) =Cystineura amymone=, Ménétries, Plate XXIV, Fig. 7, ♂ (Amymone).

_Butterfly._--The fore wings are white on the upper side, dusted with gray at the base, on the costa, the apex, and the outer margin. The hind wings are gray on the basal area, pale yellowish-brown on the limbal area, with a narrow fuscous margin. On the under side the markings of the upper side reappear, the gray tints being replaced by yellow. The hind wings are yellowish, with a white transverse band near the base and an incomplete series of white spots on the limbal area. Expanse, 1.50 inch.

The early stages await description. The insect is found about Brownsville, Texas, and throughout Mexico and Central America.

Genus CALLICORE, Hübner

(The Leopard-spots)

_Butterfly._--Small-sized butterflies, with the upper side of the wings dark in color, marked with bands of shining metallic blue or silvery-green, the under side of the wings generally more or less brilliantly colored, carmine upon the primaries and silvery-white upon the secondaries, with the apex of the primaries marked with black transverse bands and the body of the secondaries traversed by curiously arranged bands of deep black, these bands inclosing about the middle of the wing circular or pear-shaped spots. All of the subcostal nervules in this genus arise beyond the end of the cell. The costal and the median veins are swollen near the base. The cell in both the fore and hind wings is open.

_Early Stages._--Very little is known of these.

This genus numbers about thirty species, almost all of which are found in South America, only one being known to inhabit the United States, being found in the extreme southern portion of Florida, and there only rarely.

(1) =Callicore clymena=, Hübner, Plate XXI, Fig. 5, ♂; Fig. 6, ♂, _under side_ (The Leopard-spot).

_Butterfly._--The wings on the upper side are black, the primaries crossed by an oblique iridescent bluish-green band, and the secondaries marked by a similarly colored marginal band. On the under side the primaries are crimson from the base to the outer third, which is white, margined with black, and crossed by an outer narrow black band and an inner broad black band. The secondaries on this side are white, marked about the middle by two large coalescing black spots, and nearer the costa a large pear-shaped spot, both ringed about with black lines. Beyond these black rings are two black bands conformed to the outline of the inner and outer margins of the wing, and, in addition, a fine black marginal line. The costa is edged with crimson. Expanse, 1.75 inch.

_Early Stages._--Unknown.

The Leopard-spot is found occasionally in Florida, but quite commonly in the Antilles, Mexico, and Central America.

Genus TIMETES, Boisduval

(The Dagger-wings)

_Butterfly._--The palpi are moderately long, thickly clothed with scales, the last joint elongated and pointed. The antennæ have a well-developed club. The fore wings and the hind wings have the cell open. In the fore wing the subcostal vein, which has five branches, emits the first nervule well before the end of the cell, the second a little beyond it, and the third and fourth near together, before the apex of the wing. The third median nervule of the hind wing is greatly produced and forms the support of the long tail which adorns this wing. Between the end of the submedian vein and the first median nervule is another lobe-like prolongation of the outer margin of the wing. The butterflies are characterized for the most part by dark upper surfaces, with light under surfaces marked with broad bands and lines of varying intensity of color. They are easily distinguished from the butterflies of all other genera of the Nymphalidæ by the remarkable tail-like appendage of the hind wing, giving them somewhat the appearance of miniature Papilionidæ.

_Early Stages._--Nothing of note has been recorded of their early stages which may be accepted as reliable, and there is an opportunity here for study and research.

There are about twenty-five species belonging to the genus, all found within the tropical regions of America. Four species are occasionally taken in the extreme southern portions of Florida and Texas. They are all, however, very common in the Antilles, Mexico, and more southern lands.

(1) =Timetes coresia=, Godart, Plate XXI, Fig. 1, ♂; Fig. 2, ♂, _under side_ (The Waiter).

_Butterfly._--Easily recognized by means of our figures, which show that this creature deserves the trivial name I have bestowed upon it. In its dark coat and white vest it gracefully attends the feasts of Flora. Expanse, 2.50 inches.

So far as I am aware, nothing reliable has been recorded as to the early stages of this insect. It is occasionally found in Texas.

(2) =Timetes petreus=, Cramer, Plate XXI, Fig. 3, ♂ (The Ruddy Dagger-wing).

_Butterfly._--The upper side of the wings is accurately delineated in the plate. On the under side the wings are pale, with the dark bands of the upper side reproduced. Expanse, 2.60 inches. It occurs in southern Florida and Texas, and elsewhere in tropical America.

(3) =Timetes chiron=, Fabricius, Plate XXI, Fig. 4, ♂ (The Many-banded Dagger-wing).

_Butterfly._--Easily recognized by means of the figure in the plate. Like the preceding species, this is occasionally found in Texas. It is very common in Mexico, South America, and the Antilles.

Genus HYPOLIMNAS, Hübner

(The Tropic Queens)

_Butterfly._--Eyes naked. The palpi are produced, rising above the head, heavily scaled. The antennæ have a well-developed, finely pointed club. The fore wings have stout costal and median veins. The subcostal throws out five nervules, the first two before the end of the cell, the third midway between the end of the cell and the outer border; the fourth and the fifth diverge from each other midway between the third and the outer border, and both terminate below the apex. The upper discocellular vein is wanting; the middle discocellular vein is bent inwardly; the lower discocellular is very weak, and, in some species, wanting. The cell of the hind wing is lightly closed.

_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar is cylindrical, thickest toward the middle. The head is adorned with two erect rugose spines; the segments have dorsal rows of branching spines, and three lateral rows on either side of the shorter spines. It feeds on various species of malvaceous plants and also on the common portulaca.

_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is thick, with the head obtusely pointed; the abdominal segments adorned with a double row of tubercles. The thorax is convex.

This genus, which includes a large number of species, reaches its fullest development in the tropics of the Old World, and includes some of the most beautiful, as well as the most singular, forms, which mimic the protected species of the Euploeinæ, or milkweed butterflies, of the Indo-Malayan and Ethiopian regions. In some way one of the most widely spread of these species, which is found throughout the tropics of Asia and Africa, has obtained lodgment upon the soil of the New World, and is occasionally found in Florida, where it is by no means common. It may be that it was introduced from Africa in the time of the slave-trade, having been accidentally brought over by ship. That this is not impossible is shown by the fact that the writer has, on several occasions, obtained in the city of Pittsburgh specimens of rare and beautiful tropical insects which emerged from chrysalids that were found attached to bunches of bananas brought from Honduras.

(1) =Hypolimnas misippus=, Linnæus, Plate XXI, Fig. 9, ♂; Fig. 10, ♀ (The Mimic).

_Butterfly_, ♂.--On the upper side the wings are velvety-black, with two conspicuous white spots on the fore wing, and a larger one on the middle of the hind wing, the margins of these spots reflecting iridescent purple. On the under side the wings are white, intricately marked with black lines, and black and reddish-ochraceous spots and shades.

♀.--The female mimics two or three forms of an Oriental milkweed butterfly, the pattern of the upper side of the wings conforming to that of the variety of the protected species which is most common in the region where the insect is found. The species mimicked is _Danais chrysippus_, of which at least three varietal forms or local races are known. The American butterfly conforms in the female sex to the typical _D. chrysippus_, to which it presents upon the upper side a startling likeness. On the under side it is marked much as the male. Expanse, ♂, 2.50 inches; ♀, 3.00 inches.

_Early Stages._--What has been said as to the early stages in the description of the genus must suffice for the species. But little is as yet accurately known upon the subject.

The range of _H. misippus_ is southern Florida, the Antilles, and the northern parts of South America. It is not common on this side of the Atlantic, but very common in Africa, tropical Asia, and the islands south as far as northern Australia.

Genus BASILARCHIA, Scudder

(The White Admirals)

_Butterfly._--Head large; the eyes are large, naked; the antennæ are moderately long, with a distinct club; the palpi are compact, stout, produced, densely scaled. The fore wings are subtriangular, the apex well rounded, the lower two thirds of the outer margin slightly excavated. The first two subcostal nervules arise before the end of the cell. The hind wings are rounded, crenulate.

_Egg._--Nearly spherical, with the surface pitted with large hexagonal cells (see p. 3, Fig. 1).

_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar in its mature state is cylindrical, somewhat thicker before than behind, with the second segment adorned with two prominent rugose club-shaped tubercles. The fifth segment, and the ninth and tenth segments also, are ornamented with dorsal prominences (see p. 8, Fig. 20).

_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is suspended by a stout cremaster; the abdominal segments are rounded. On the middle of the dorsum is a prominent projecting boss. The thorax is rounded. The head is rounded or slightly bifid.

The caterpillars feed upon the leaves of various species of oak, birch, willow, and linden. The eggs are laid upon the extreme tip of the leaves, and the infant caterpillar, feeding upon the leaf in immediate proximity to the point where it has been hatched, attaches bits of bitten leaf by strands of silk to the midrib, thus stiffening its perch and preventing its curling as the rib dries. Out of bits of leaves thus detached it constructs a packet of material, which it moves forward along the midrib until it has completed its second moult. By this time winter begins to come on, and it cuts away for itself the material of the leaf on either side of the rib, from the tip toward the base, glues the rib of the leaf to the stem by means of silk, draws together the edges of the remaining portions of the leaf, and constructs a tube-like hibernaculum, or winter quarters, exactly fitting the body, in which it passes the winter.

There are a number of species of the genus found in the United States, the habits of which have been carefully studied, and they are among our most interesting butterflies, several species being mimics of protected species.

(1) =Basilarchia astyanax=, Fabricius, Plate XXII, Fig. 1, ♂; Plate III, Figs. 17, 21, 25, larva; Plate IV, Figs. 12, 13, _chrysalis_ (The Red-spotted Purple).

_Butterfly._--This common but most beautiful species is sufficiently characterized by the plate so far as the upper surface is concerned. On the under side the wings are brownish, banded with black on the margins; the lunules are on this side as above, but the inner band of spots is red. There are two red spots at the base of the fore wings, and four at the base of the hind wings. The palpi are white below, and the abdomen is marked with a lateral white line on each side. Expanse, 3.00-3.25 inches.

_Egg._--The egg, which resembles somewhat closely that of _B. disippus_ (see p. 3, Fig. 1), is yellowish-green, gradually turning dark brown as the time for the emergence of the caterpillar approaches.

_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar is so well delineated in Plate III, Fig. 17, as to obviate the necessity for a lengthy verbal description.

_Chrysalis._--What has been said of the caterpillar is also true of the chrysalis (see Plate IV).

The larva feeds upon the willow, cherry, apple, linden (_Tilia_), huckleberry, currant, and other allied shrubs and trees. The butterfly is somewhat variable, and a number of varietal forms have been described. It ranges generally over the United States and southern Canada as far as the Rocky Mountain ranges in the West, and is even said to occur at high elevations in Mexico.

(2) =Basilarchia arthemis=, Drury, Plate XXII, Fig. 4, ♂, form =lamina=, Fabricius; Fig. 5, ♂, form =proserpina=, Edwards, Plate III, Fig. 26, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 14, 23, _chrysalis_ (The Banded Purple).

_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished in the form _lamina_ from _astyanax_, which in other respects it somewhat closely resembles, by the broad white bands crossing both the fore wings and the hind wings, and followed on the secondaries by a submarginal row of red spots shading inwardly into blue. In the form _proserpina_ there is a tendency on the part of the white bands to become obsolete, and in some specimens they do entirely disappear. The likeness to _astyanax_ in such cases is striking, and the main point by which the forms may then be discriminated is the persistence of the red spots on the upper side of the secondaries; but even these frequently are obsolete. Expanse, 2.50 inches.

_Egg._--The egg is grayish-green, with "kite-shaped" cells.

_Caterpillar._--Greenish-or olive-brown, blotched with white in its mature form, which is well represented in Plate III. It feeds upon the willow, the hawthorn (_Cratægus_), and probably other plants.

_Chrysalis._--The figure in Plate IV is sufficiently exact to obviate the necessity for further description.

This beautiful insect ranges through northern New England and New York, Quebec, Ontario, and the watershed of the Great Lakes, spreading southward at suitable elevations into Pennsylvania. I have taken it about Cresson, Pennsylvania, at an elevation of twenty-five hundred feet above sea-level. It is not uncommon about Meadville, Pennsylvania. The species appears to be, like all the others of the genus, somewhat unstable and plastic, or else hybridization is very frequent in this genus. Probably all the species have arisen from a common stock.

+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| EXPLANATION OF PLATE XXII |
| |
| 1. _Basilarchia astyanax_, Fabricius, ♂. |
| 2. _Heterochroa californica_, Butler, ♀. |
| 3. _Basilarchia lorquini_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 4. _Basilarchia arthemis_, Drury, ♂. |
| 5. _Basilarchia arthemis_, Drury, var. |
| _proserpina_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 6. _Basilarchia weidemeyeri_, Edwards, ♂. |
| |
| |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+

(3) =Basilarchia weidemeyeri=, Edwards, Plate XXII, Fig. 6, ♂ (Weidemeyer's Admiral).

_Butterfly._--Superficially like _arthemis_, but easily distinguished by the absence of the lunulate marginal bands of blue on the margins of the hind wings and by the presence of a submarginal series of white spots on both wings. Expanse, 3.00 inches.

_Early Stages._--These have been described by W.H. Edwards in the "Canadian Entomologist," vol. xxiv, p. 107, and show great likeness to the following species, _B. disippus_. The caterpillar feeds upon cottonwood (_Populus_).

The insect is found on the Pacific slope and eastward to Montana, Nebraska, and New Mexico.

(4) =Basilarchia disippus=, Godart, Plate VII, Fig. 4, ♂; Plate III, Figs. 19, 22, 24, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 18-20, _chrysalis_ (The Viceroy).

_Butterfly._--This species mimics _Anosia plexippus_ in a remarkable manner, as may be seen by referring to Plate VII. An aberration in which the mesial dark transverse band on the secondaries has disappeared was named _pseudodorippus_ by Dr. Strecker. The type is in the Mead collection, now belonging to the writer. Expanse, 2.50-2.75 inches.

_Early Stages._--These have all been carefully studied by numerous writers. The egg is depicted on p. 3, Fig. 1. The caterpillar is shown on p. 8, as well as in Plate III.

The species ranges everywhere from southern Canada and British America into the Gulf States.

(5) =Basilarchia hulsti=, Edwards, Plate VII, Fig. 5, ♂ (Hulst's Admiral).

_Butterfly._--This form is apparently a mimic of _Anosia berenice_. The ground-color of the wings is not so bright as in _B. disippus_, and the mesial band of the secondaries on the upper side is relieved by a series of small whitish spots, one on each interspace. The perfect insect can easily be distinguished by its markings. Expanse, 2.50-2.60 inches. Thus far it is only known from Utah and Arizona. The early stages have not been described.

(6) =Basilarchia lorquini=, Boisduval, Plate XXII, Fig. 3, ♂ (Lorquin's Admiral).

_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished from all the other species of the genus by the yellowish-white bar near the end of the cell of the fore wings and the reddish color of the apex and upper margin of the same wings. Expanse, 2.25-2.75 inches.

_Early Stages._--These have been partially described by Henry Edwards, and minutely worked out by Dr. Dyar, for whose description the reader may consult the "Canadian Entomologist," vol. xxiii, p. 172. The food-plant of the caterpillar is _Populus_, willows, and the choke-cherry (_Prunus demissa_).

Besides the forms figured in our plates there is a species in Florida named _floridensis_ by Strecker, and subsequently _eros_ by Edwards, which is generally larger and much darker than _B. disippus_, which it otherwise closely approximates.

THE BUTTERFLIES' FAD

"I happened one night in my travels
To stray into Butterfly Vale,
Where my wondering eyes beheld butterflies
_With wings that were wide as a sail_.
They lived in such houses of grandeur,
Their days were successions of joys,
And the very last fad these butterflies had
_Was making collections of boys_.

"There were boys of all sizes and ages
_Pinned up on their walls_. When I said
'Twas a terrible sight to see boys in that plight,
I was answered: '_Oh, well, they are dead.
We catch them alive, but we kill them
With ether_--a very nice way:
Just look at this fellow--his hair is so yellow,
And his eyes such a beautiful gray.

"'Then there is a droll little darky,
As black as the clay at our feet;
He sets off that blond that is pinned just beyond
In a way most artistic and neat.
And now let me show you the latest,--
A specimen really select,
A boy with a head that is carroty-red
And a face that is funnily specked.

"'We cannot decide where to place him;
Those spots bar him out of each class;
We think him a treasure to study at leisure
And analyze under a glass.'
I seemed to grow cold as I listened
To the words that these butterflies spoke;
With fear overcome, I was speechless and dumb,
And then with a start--I awoke!"

ELLA WHEELER WILCOX.

Genus ADELPHA, Hübner

(The Sisters)

_Butterfly._--This genus is very closely allied to the preceding, and is the South American representative of _Basilarchia_. The only difference which is noticeable structurally is in the fact that the eyes are hairy, the palpi not so densely clothed with scales. The prothoracic legs of the males are smaller than in _Basilarchia_. The cell of the primaries is very slightly closed by the lower discocellular vein, which reaches the median a little beyond the origin of the second median nervule. The outer margin of the fore wing is rarely excavated, as in _Basilarchia_, and the lower extremity of the hind wing near the anal angle is generally more produced than in the last-mentioned genus.

_Early Stages._--The life-history of the genus has not been carefully worked out, but an account has been published recently of the caterpillar of the only species found within our fauna, which shows that, while in general resembling the caterpillars of the genus _Basilarchia_, the segments are adorned with more branching spines and with short fleshy tubercles, giving rise to small clusters of hairs.

The chrysalids are of peculiar form, with bifid heads and broad wing-cases. They are generally brown in color, with metallic spots. The only species in our fauna is confined to southern California, Arizona, and Mexico.

(1) =Adelpha californica=, Butler, Plate XXII, Fig. 2, ♀ (The Californian Sister).

_Butterfly._--Easily recognized by the large subtriangular patch of orange-red at the apex of the primaries. In its habits and manner of flight it closely resembles the species of the genus _Basilarchia_. Expanse, 2.50-3.00 inches.

_Early Stages._--So far as is known to the writer, these have not been described, except partially by Henry Edwards in the "Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences," vol. v, p. 171. The caterpillar feeds upon oaks.

The insect is found in California, Nevada, Arizona, and Mexico.

Genus CHLORIPPE, Boisduval

(The Hackberry Butterflies)

_Butterfly._--Small butterflies, generally some shade of fulvous, marked with eye-like spots on the posterior margin of the secondaries, and occasionally upon the outer margin of the primaries, the fore wings as well as the hind wings being in addition more or less strongly spotted and banded with black. The eyes are naked; the antennæ are straight, provided with a stout, oval club; the palpi are porrect, the second joint heavily clothed with hairs, the third joint short, likewise covered with scales. The costal vein of the fore wing is stout. The first subcostal vein alone arises before the end of the cell. The cell is open in both wings.

_Egg._--The eggs, which are deposited in clusters, are nearly globular, the summit broad and convex. The egg is ornamented by from eighteen to twenty rather broad vertical ribs, having no great elevation, between which are numerous faint and delicate cross-lines.

_Caterpillar._--The head is subquadrate, with the summit crowned by a pair of diverging stout coronal spines which have upon them a number of radiating spinules. Back of the head, on the sides, is a frill of curved spines. The body is cylindrical, thickest at the middle, tapering forward and backward from this point. The anal prolegs are widely divergent and elongated, as in many genera of the _Satyrinoe_.

_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is compressed laterally and keeled on the dorsal side, concave on the ventral side, the head distinctly bifid. The cremaster is very remarkable, presenting the appearance of a flattened disk, the sides studded with hooks, by means of which the chrysalis is attached to the surface, from which it depends in such a manner that the ventral surface is parallel to the plane of support.

The caterpillars feed upon the _Celtis_, or hackberry.

There are a number of species, mainly confined to the southwestern portion of the United States, though some of them range southward into Mexico. Two only are known in the Middle States. The species are double-brooded in the more northern parts of the country, and the caterpillars produced from eggs laid by the second brood hibernate.

(1) =Chlorippe celtis=, Boisduval and Leconte, Plate XXIII, Fig. 3, ♂; Fig. 4, ♀; Fig. 11, ♂, _under side_ (The Hackberry Butterfly).

_Butterfly_, ♂.--The primaries at the base and the secondaries except at the outer angle pale olive-brown, the rest of the wings black. The dark apical tract of the primaries is marked by two irregular, somewhat broken bands of white spots. There is a red-ringed eye-spot between the first and second median nervules, near the margin of the fore wing, and there are six such spots on each hind wing. On the under side the ground-color is grayish-purple; the spots and markings of the upper side reappear on this side.

♀.--The female has the wings, as is always the case in this genus, much broader and not so pointed at the apex of the primaries as in the male sex, and the color is much paler. Expanse, ♂, 1.80 inch; ♀, 2.10 inches.

_Early Stages._--These are beautifully described and delineated by Edwards in "The Butterflies of North America," vol. ii. The caterpillar feeds on the hackberry (_Celtis occidentalis_).

This species is found generally from southern Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois to the Gulf of Mexico. It is not, so far as is known, found on the Pacific coast.

(2) =Chlorippe antonia=, Edwards, Plate XXIII, Fig. 12, ♂ (Antonia).

_Butterfly._--Bright yellowish-fulvous on the upper side. Easily distinguished from _celtis_ by the two eye-spots near the margin of the primaries. Expanse, 1.75-2.00 inches.

_Early Stages._--Unknown.

_Antonia_ is found in Texas.

(3) =Chlorippe montis=, Edwards, Plate XXII, Fig. 7, ♂; Fig. 8, ♀ (The Mountain Emperor).

_Butterfly._--Very closely allied to _C. antonia_ in the style and location of the markings, but tinted with pale ashen-gray on the upper side of the wings, and not yellowish-fulvous as in the last-named species. Expanse, ♂, 1.75 inch; ♀, 2.15 inches.

The early stages are unknown.

_Montis_ occurs in Arizona and Colorado, and by some writers is regarded as a varietal form of _antonia_, in which opinion they may be correct.

(4) =Chlorippe leilia=, Edwards, Plate XXIII, Fig. 11, ♂ (Leilia).

_Butterfly._--Like _antonia_, this species has two extra-median eye-spots on the primaries, and thus may be distinguished from _celtis_. From _antonia_ it may be separated by its larger size and the deeper reddish-brown color of the upper surfaces. Expanse, 2.10-2.50 inches.

_Early Stages._--Unknown.

So far we have received this butterfly only from Arizona.

(5) =Chlorippe alicia=, Plate XXIII, Fig. 9, ♂; Fig. 10, ♀ (Alicia).

_Butterfly._--Very bright fawn at the base of the wings, shading into pale buff outwardly. There is but one eye-spot on the primaries. The six eye-spots on the secondaries are black and very conspicuous. The marginal bands are darker and heavier than in any other species of the genus. Expanse, ♂, 2.00 inches; ♀, 2.50 inches.

The early stages are only partially known.

_Alicia_ ranges through the Gulf States from Florida to Texas.

(6) =Chlorippe clyton=, Boisduval and Leconte, Plate XXIII, Fig. 5, ♂; Fig. 6, ♀; Plate III, Fig. 20, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 15-17, _chrysalis_ (The Tawny Emperor).

_Butterfly_, ♂.--The fore wings without an extra-median eye-spot, and the secondaries broadly obscured with dark brown or blackish, especially on the outer borders, so that the eye-spots are scarcely, if at all, visible.

♀.--Much larger and paler in color than the male, the eye-spots on the secondaries conspicuous. Expanse, ♂, 2.00 inches; ♀, 2.50-2.65 inches.

_Early Stages._--The life-history has been carefully worked out, and the reader who wishes to know all about it should consult the writings of Edwards and Scudder.

This species is occasionally found in New England, and ranges thence westward to Michigan, and southward to the Gulf States. It is quite common in the valley of the Ohio.

(7) =Chlorippe flora=, Edwards, Plate XXIII, Fig. 1, ♂; Fig. 2, ♀ (Flora).

_Butterfly_, ♂.--The ground-color is bright reddish-fulvous on the upper side. The usual markings occur, but there is no eye-spot, or ocellus, on the primaries. The hind wings are not heavily obscured with dark brown, as in _clyton_, and the six ocelli stand forth conspicuously upon the reddish ground. The hind wings are more strongly angulated than in any other species. The borders are quite solidly black.

♀.--The female is much larger than the male, and looks like a very pale female of _clyton_. Expanse, ♂, 1.75 inch; ♀, 2.35 inches.

_Early Stages._--The life-history has been described by Edwards in the "Canadian Entomologist," vol. xiii, p. 81. The habits of the insect in its early stages and the appearance of the larva and chrysalis do not differ widely from those of _C. clyton_, its nearest ally.

_Flora_ is found in Florida and on the borders of the Gulf to Texas.

Genus PYRRHANÆA, Schatz

(The Leaf-wings)

_Butterfly._--Medium-sized butterflies, on the upper side of the wings for the most part red or fulvous, on the under side of the wings obscurely mottled on the secondaries and the costal and apical tracts of the primaries in such a manner as to cause them to appear on this side like rusty and faded leaves. Structurally they are characterized by the somewhat falcate shape of the primaries and the strongly produced outer margin of the secondaries about the termination of the third median nervule. The first and second subcostal nervules coalesce with one another and with the costal vein. The costal margin of the fore wing at the base is strongly angulated, and the posterior margin of the primaries is straight. The cell of the secondaries is very feebly closed.

_Egg._--Spherical, flattened at the base and somewhat depressed at the apex, with a few parallel horizontal series of raised points about the summit.

_Caterpillar._--Head somewhat globular in appearance; the anterior portion of the first thoracic segment of the body is much smaller in diameter than the head; the body is cylindrical, tapering to a point.

_Chrysalis._--Short, stout, with transverse ridges above the wings on the middle of the abdomen, keeled on the sides. The cremaster is small and furnished with a globular tip, the face of which is on the same plane as the ventral surface of the body, causing the chrysalis to hang somewhat obliquely from the surface which supports it.

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The Butterfly BookChapter IV: Books About North American Butterflies (5)

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