UNIQUE AND POPULAR WORKS FOR ALL
NATURE LOVERS.
_Uniform with this Volume._
* * * * *
Wayside and Woodland
Blossoms
A Pocket Guide to British Wild Flowers
for the Country Rambler.
(_First and Second Series._)
With Clear Descriptions of 760 Species.
BY
EDWARD STEP, F.L.S.
And Coloured Figures of 257 Species by
MABEL E. STEP.
* * * * *
Wayside and Woodland
Trees
A Pocket Guide to the British Sylva.
BY
EDWARD STEP, F.L.S.
With 127 Plates from Original Photographs by
HENRY IRVING,
And 57 Illustrations of the Leaves, Flowers and Fruit by
MABEL E. STEP.
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AT ALL BOOKSELLERS.
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THE WAYSIDE
AND WOODLAND
SERIES
THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE
BRITISH ISLES
[Illustration: _Pl._ 1. _Frontispiece._ Swallow-tail Butterfly. _Male
and female, with caterpillars and chrysalids._]
THE BUTTERFLIES
OF THE
BRITISH ISLES
BY
RICHARD SOUTH, F.E.S.
EDITOR OF
"THE ENTOMOLOGIST," ETC.
WITH
ACCURATELY COLOURED FIGURES
OF EVERY SPECIES AND MANY VARIETIES
ALSO DRAWINGS OF EGG, CATERPILLAR
CHRYSALIS, AND FOOD-PLANT
LONDON
FREDERICK WARNE & CO.
AND NEW YORK
1906
(_All rights reserved_)
PREFACE.
Few things add more enjoyment to a country ramble than a knowledge of
the many and varied forms belonging to the animal and vegetable kingdoms
that present themselves to the notice of the observing wayfarer on every
side.
Almost every one admires the wild flowers that Nature produces so
lavishly, and in such charming variety of form and colour; but, in
addition to their own proper florescence, the plants of woodland,
meadow, moor, or down have other "blossoms" that arise from them,
although they are not of them. These are the beautiful winged creatures
called butterflies, which as crawling caterpillars obtain their
nourishment from plant leafage, and in the perfect state help the bees
to rifle the flowers of their sweets, and at the same time assist in the
work of fertilization.
It is the story of these aërial flowers that we wish to tell, and hope
that in the telling we may win from the reader a loving interest in some
of the most attractively interesting of Nature's children.
There are many people, no doubt, who take an intelligent interest in
the various forms of animal life, and yet do not care to collect
specimens because, as in the case of butterflies for instance, the
necessity arises for killing their captives. Such lovers of Nature are
quite satisfied to know the names of the species, and to learn something
of their life-histories and habits. Still, however, there are others,
and possibly a larger number, who will desire to capture a few specimens
of each kind of butterfly for closer examination and study. It is
believed that this little volume will be found useful to both sections
of naturalists alike.
The author in preparing the book has been largely guided by a
recollection of the kind of information he sought when he himself was a
beginner, now some forty odd years ago.
In conclusion, he desires to tender his most sincere thanks to the
undermentioned gentlemen, who so kindly furnished him with eggs,
caterpillars, and chrysalids; or favoured him with the loan of some of
their choicest varieties of butterflies for figuring; without their
valued assistance many of the illustrations could not have been
prepared:--Rev. Gilbert Raynor, Major Robertson, Messrs. F. Noad Clark,
T. Dewhurst, C.H. Forsythe, F.W. Frohawk, A.H. Hamm, A. Harrison, H.
Main, A.M. Montgomery, E.D. Morgan, G.B. Oliver, J. Ovenden, G. Randell,
A.L. Rayward, E.J. Salisbury, A.H. Shepherd, F.A. Small, L.D. Symington,
A.E. Tonge, B. Weddell, F.G. Whittle, and H. Wood.
_Varieties_--Messrs. R. Adkin, J.A. Clark, F.W. Frohawk, and E. Sabine.
With kind permission of the Ray Society, figures of the following larvæ
and pupæ have been reproduced from Buckler's "Larvæ of British
Butterflies":--_P. daplidice_, _C. edusa_, _M. athalia_, _P. c-album_,
_S. semele_, _A. hyperanthus_, _C. typhon_, _C. pamphilus_, _C. rubi_,
_C. argiolus_, _A. thaumas_, _A. actæon_. Larva only--_L. sinapis_, _A.
selene_, _A. aurinia_, and _T. pruni_.
Figures of _A. cratægi_, _A. lineola_, and _C. palæmon_ have been made
from preserved skins.
For coloured plates, 1, 30, 42, 48, 58, 66, 98, 100, 112, 116, 118, and
the accurately drawn black-and-white figures, including enlargements,
the author is greatly indebted to Mr. Horace Knight.
INTRODUCTORY.
Butterflies belong to the great Order of insects called Lepidoptera
(Greek _lepis_, a scale, and _pteron_, a wing), that is, insects whose
wings are covered with minute structures termed scales. Moths
(Heterocera) also belong to the same order, and the first point to deal
with is how may butterflies be distinguished from moths? In a broad kind
of way they may be recognized by their horns (_antennæ_), which are
slender as regards the shaft, but are gradually or abruptly clubbed at
the extremity. For this reason they were designated Rhopalocera, or
"club horned," the Heterocera being supposed to have horns of various
kinds other than clubbed. As a matter of fact this method of separating
moths and butterflies does not hold good in dealing with the Lepidoptera
of the world, and it is from a study of these, as a whole, that
systematists have arrived at the conclusion that there is no actual line
of division between moths and butterflies. In modern classification,
then, butterflies are reduced from the rank of a sub-order, which they
formerly held, and are now dovetailed into the various newer systems of
arrangement between certain families of moths.
As regards British butterflies, however, it will be found that these
may be known, as such, by their clubbed horns. Only the Burnets among
British moths have horns in any way similar, and these are thickened
gradually towards the extremity rather than clubbed. Day-flying moths,
especially the bright-coloured ones, might be mistaken for butterflies
by the uninitiated, but in all these the horns will be found not at all
butterfly-like.
Although varieties of the species will be referred to in the descriptive
portion of the book, a few general remarks on variation in butterflies
may here be made. All kinds are liable to vary in tint or in the
markings, sometimes in both. Such variation, in the more or less
constant species especially, is perhaps only trivial and therefore
hardly attracts attention. In a good many kinds variation is often of a
very pronounced character, and is then almost certain to obtain notice.
Except in a few instances, where the aberration is of an unusual kind,
it is possible to obtain all the intermediate stages, or gradations,
between the ordinary form of a species and its most extreme variety. A
series of such connecting links in the variation of a species is of
greater interest, and higher educational value, than one in which the
extremes alone have a place.
In those kinds of butterflies that attain the perfect state twice in the
year, the individuals composing the first flight are somewhat different
in marking from those of the second flight. Such species as the large
and small whites exhibit this kind of variation, which is termed
seasonal dimorphism. The males of some species, as for example the
Common Blue and the Orange-tip, differ from the females in colour; this
is known as sexual dimorphism. The Silver-Washed Fritillary, which has
two forms of the female, one brown like the male, the other green or
greenish in colour, is a good example of dimorphism confined to one sex.
Gynandrous specimens, sometimes called "Hermaphrodites," are those which
exhibit both male and female coloration, or other wing characters; when
one side is entirely male and the other side entirely female, the
gynandromorphism would be described as complete.
The ornamentation on the under side of a butterfly differs from that of
the upper side, and is found to assimilate or harmonize in a remarkable
manner with the usual resting-place. It is therefore of service to the
insect when settled with wings erect over the back, in the manner of all
butterflies, except some few kinds of Skippers.
The number of known species of butterflies throughout the world has been
put at about thirteen thousand, and it has been suggested by Dr. Sharp
that there may be nearly twice as many still awaiting discovery. Dr.
Staudinger in his "Catalog" gives a list of over seven hundred kinds of
butterflies as occurring in the whole of the Palæarctic Region. This
zoological region embraces Europe, including the British Islands, Africa
north of the Atlas range of mountains, and temperate Asia, including
Japan. The entire number of species that can by any means be regarded as
British does not exceed sixty-eight. Even this limited total comprises
sundry migratory butterflies, such as the Clouded Yellows, the Painted
Lady, the Red Admiral, the Camberwell Beauty, and the Milkweed
Butterfly; and also the still less frequent, or perhaps more accidental
visitors, the Long-tailed Blue and the Bath White. Again, the Large
Copper is now extinct in England, and the Mazarine Blue does not seem to
have been observed in any of its old haunts in the country for over
forty years. The Black-veined White is also scarce and exceedingly
local.
The majority of the remaining fifty-seven butterflies may be considered
natives, and of these about half are so widely distributed that the
young collector should, if fairly energetic, secure nearly all of them
during his first campaign. The other species will have to be looked for
in their special localities, but a few kinds are so strictly attached to
particular spots, that a good deal of patience will have to be exercised
before a chance may occur of obtaining them.
A few remarks may here be made in reference to the names and arrangement
adopted in the present volume.
As will be adverted to in the descriptive section, the English names of
our butterflies have not always been quite the same as those now in
general use. There has, however, been far less stability in scientific
nomenclature, and very many changes in both generic and specific names
have been made during the past twenty years, more especially perhaps
within the last decade.
Genera are now founded by some specialists on characters which formerly
served to distinguish one species from another, whilst other authorities
merge several genera in one upon certain details of structure that are
common to them all.
Patient research into the entomological antiquities has revealed much
important material, some of which may furnish a new interpretation of
the Linnean classification of Lepidoptera.
The discovery of the earliest Latin specific name bestowed upon an
insect, is a labour which entails a large expenditure of time and
requires fine judgment. Great credit is therefore due to those who
undertake such investigations, the result of which may tend to the
establishment of a fixed nomenclature in the, probably not remote,
future, although it sadly hampers and perplexes students in the
meanwhile.
All things considered then, it has been deemed advisable not to make
many changes in specific names, and to retain the old genera as far as
possible. The arrangement of families, genera, etc., will be found to
accord with that most generally accepted both in England and on the
continent.
THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE BRITISH ISLES.
PART I.
THE LIFE CYCLE OF A BUTTERFLY.
As is the case with all other Lepidoptera, butterflies pass through
three very distinct stages before they attain the perfect form. These
stages are:--1. The egg (_ovum_, plural _ova_). 2. The caterpillar
(_larva_, _larvæ_). 3. The chrysalis (_pupa_, _pupæ_). The perfect
insect is called the _imago_ (plural _imagines_).
The Egg.
Butterfly eggs are of various forms, and whilst in some kinds the
egg-shell (_chorion_) is elaborately ribbed or fluted, others are simply
pitted or covered with a kind of network or reticulation; others, again,
are almost or quite smooth. If the top of an egg, such as that of the
Purple Emperor (Plate 28), is examined under a good lens a depression
will be noted, and in this will be seen a neat and starlike kind of
ornamentation. In the middle of this "rosette" are, present in all eggs,
minute apertures known as micropyles (little doors), and it is through
these that the spermatozoa of the male finds entry to the interior of
the egg and fertilization is effected. The changes that occur in the egg
after it is laid are of a very complex nature, and readers who may
desire information on this subject are referred to Sharp's "Insects,"