medium size, and are generally obscure in color, being of some shade of
brown or gray, though a few species within our territory are brightly
colored. Gaily colored species belonging to this subfamily are more
numerous in the tropics of both hemispheres. The wings are very
generally ornamented, especially upon the under side, by eye-like spots,
dark, pupiled in the center with a point of lighter color, and ringed
around with one or more light circles. They are possessed of a weak
flight, flitting and dancing about among herbage, and often hiding among
the weeds and grasses. Most of them are forest-loving insects, though a
few inhabit the cold and bleak summits of mountains and grassy patches
near the margins of streams in the far North, while some are found on
the treeless prairies of the West. In the warmer regions of the Gulf
States a few species are found which have the habit of flitting about
the grass of the roadsides and in open spaces about houses. The veins of
the fore wings are generally greatly swollen at the base, enabling them
thus to be quickly distinguished from all other butterflies of this
family.
The eggs, so far as we have knowledge of them, are subspherical,
somewhat higher than broad, generally ribbed along the sides,
particularly near the apex, and rounded at the base, which is generally
broader than the apex.
The caterpillars at the time of emergence from the egg have the head
considerably larger than the remainder of the body; but when they have
reached maturity they are cylindrical, tapering a little from the middle
to either end. They are bifurcated at the anal extremity, a character
which enables them to be distinguished at a glance from the larvæ of all
other American butterflies except those of the genus _Chlorippe_. They
are mostly pale green or light brown in color, ornamented with stripes
along the sides. They feed upon grasses and sedges, lying in concealment
during the daytime, and emerging at dusk to take their nourishment.
The chrysalids are rather stout in form, but little angulated, and
without any marked prominences or projections. They are green or brown
in color. Most of them are pendant, but a few forms pupate at the roots
of grasses or under stones lying upon the ground.
The butterflies of this subfamily have been arranged, so far as they are
represented in the faunal region of which this book treats, in nine
genera, which include about sixty species. It is quite possible that a
number of species still remain to be discovered and described, though it
is also true that some of the so-called species are likely to prove in
the end little more than local races or varieties.
Genus DEBIS, Westwood
(The Eyed Nymphs)
"The wild bee and the butterfly
Are bright and happy things to see,
Living beneath a summer sky."
ELIZA COOK.
_Butterfly._--Characterized by the stout but not greatly swollen costal
vein of the fore wing, by the rather short costal vein of the hind wing,
which terminates before quite reaching the outer angle, by the great
length of the lower discocellular vein of the fore wing, and by the
prolongation of the outer margin of the hind wing at the end of the
third median nervule. The outer margin of the fore wing is either
rounded or slightly excavated. The palpi are long and narrow, thickly
clothed with hairs below; the antennæ are moderately long, gradually
thickening toward the tip, without a well-marked club; the fore legs in
both sexes greatly atrophied.
[Illustration FIG. 114.--Neuration of the genus _Debis_. (After
Scudder.)]
_Egg._--Flattened spheroidal, broadly truncated at the base, the surface
smooth.
_Caterpillar._--Body long, slender, tapering from the middle; the head
cleft, each half being produced upward as a conical horn; the anal
segment provided with a pair of horns similar to those of the head,
produced longitudinally backward.
_Chrysalis._--Strongly convex dorsally, concave ventrally, with a stout
tubercular eminence on the thorax, without any other projecting
tubercles or eminences; light green in color.
This genus is large, and is well represented in Asia and the
Indo-Malayan region. I cannot see any good ground for generically
separating the two species found in North America from their congeners
of Asiatic countries, as has been done by some writers.
(1) =Debis portlandia=, Plate XVIII, Fig. 20, ♂; Plate III, Fig. 16,
_larva_; Plate IV, Fig. 6, _chrysalis_ (The Pearly Eye).
_Butterfly._--The butterfly, the male of which is well depicted as to
its upper side on the plate, does not differ greatly in the sexes. The
hind wings on the under side are marked with a series of beautiful
ocelli. In the North the insect is single-brooded; in the region of West
Virginia and southward it is double-brooded. Expanse, 1.75-2.00 inches.
_Early Stages._--The illustrations give a good idea of the mature larva
and the chrysalis. The caterpillar, like most of the _Satyrinæ_, feeds
upon grasses.
The range of this pretty insect is extensive, it being found from Maine
to the Gulf of Mexico, and westward to the Rocky Mountains.
(2) =Debis creola=, Skinner, Plate XVIII, Fig. 18, ♂; Fig. 19, ♀ (The
Creole).
_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished from the preceding species by the
elongated patches of dark raised scales upon the fore wings, situated
on the interspaces between the median nervules. The female has more
yellow upon the upper side of the fore wings than _D. portlandia_.
Expanse, 2.25 inches.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Creola_ ranges from Florida to Mexico along the Gulf.
Genus SATYRODES, Scudder
(The Grass-nymphs)
_Butterfly._--The head is moderately large; the eyes are not prominent,
hairy; the antennæ are about half as long as the costa of the fore wing,
not distinctly clubbed, gradually thickening toward the extremity. The
palpi are slender, compressed, hairy below, with the last joint rather
short and pointed. The fore and hind wings are evenly rounded on the
outer margin. The costal vein of the fore wing is thickened, but not
greatly swollen. The first and second subcostals are emitted well before
the end of the cell, the third beyond it, and the fourth and fifth from
a common stem, both terminating below the apex. The upper discocellular
vein is wanting, and the upper radial, therefore, springs from the upper
angle of the cell of the fore wing.
[Illustration FIG. 115.--Neuration of the genus _Satyrodes_. (After
Scudder.)]
_Egg._--Flattened spheroidal, broader than high, flat at the base and
rounded above.
_Caterpillar._--The head is full, the summit of either half produced
upward and forward into a slender, conical horn. The body is nearly
cylindrical, tapering backward, the last segment furnished with two
pointed, backward projections, resembling the horns of the head.
_Chrysalis._--Relatively longer and more slender than in the preceding
genus, with the thoracic prominence more acute and the head more sharply
pointed.
This genus was erected to receive the single species which, until the
present time, is its sole representative.
(1) =Satyrodes canthus=, Boisduval and Leconte, Plate XXV, Fig. 1, ♂;
Plate III, Fig. 9, _larva_; Plate IV, Fig. 9, _chrysalis_ (The Common
Grass-nymph).
_Butterfly._--It always haunts meadows and hides among the tufts of tall
grasses growing in moist places. It is rather common in New England and
the Northern States generally. It is found in Canada and is reported
from the cool upper mountain valleys in the Carolinas. It has a weak,
jerking flight, and is easily taken when found. Expanse, 1.65-1.90 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been well described by various writers. The
caterpillar feeds upon grasses.
Genus NEONYMPHA, Westwood
(The Spangled Nymphs)
"Oh! the bonny, bonny dell, whaur the primroses won,
Luikin' oot o' their leaves like wee sons o' the sun;
Whaur the wild roses hing like flickers o' flame,
And fa' at the touch wi' a dainty shame;
Whaur the bee swings ower the white-clovery sod,
And the butterfly flits like a stray thoucht o' God."
MACDONALD.
_Butterfly._--Eyes hairy. The costal and median veins of the fore wings
are much swollen at the base. The palpi are thin, compressed, thickly
clothed below with long hairs. The antennæ are comparatively short,
gradually thickening toward the outer extremity, and without a
well-defined club. Both the fore wing and the hind wing have the outer
margin evenly rounded.
[Illustration FIG. 116.--Neuration of the genus _Neonympha_. (After
Scudder.)]
_Egg._--Globular, flattened at the base, marked with irregular polygonal
cells.
_Caterpillar._--The head is large, rounded, the two halves produced
conically and studded with little conical papillæ. The last segment of
the body is bifurcate.
_Chrysalis._--Relatively long, strongly produced at the vertex; elevated
on the thorax into a blunt tubercular prominence; green in color.
This genus, which has by some writers been sunk into the genus
_Euptychia_, Hübner, is quite extensive. Nearly two hundred species are
included in _Euptychia_, which is enormously developed in the tropical
regions of the New World. Seven species of _Neonympha_ are found within
the region of which this book treats.
(1) =Neonympha gemma=, Hübner, Plate XXV, Fig. 2, ♂, _under side_ (The
Gemmed Brown).
_Butterfly._--Upon the upper side the wings are pale mouse-gray, with a
couple of twinned black spots on the outer margin of the hind wings. On
the under side the wings are reddish-gray, marked with irregular
ferruginous lines. Near the outer margin of the hind wings is a row of
silvered spots, the spots corresponding in location to the dark marginal
spots being expanded into a violet patch marked in the middle by a
twinned black spot centered with silver. Expanse, 1.25-1.35 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been beautifully described and figured by
Edwards in the third volume of "The Butterflies of North America."
The egg is somewhat globular, rather higher than wide, flattened at the
base, and marked with numerous shallow reticulated depressions. The
caterpillar of the spring brood is pale green, of the fall brood pale
brown, marked respectively with numerous longitudinal stripes of darker
green or brown. It has two long, elevated, horn-like projections upon
the head, and on the anal segment two similar projections pointing
straight backward. The chrysalis is small, green, or brown, strongly
bifid at the head. The caterpillar feeds on grasses.
The insect ranges from West Virginia to Mexico.
(2) =Neonympha henshawi=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 8, ♂ (Henshaw's
Brown).
_Butterfly._--Much like _N. gemma_, but considerably larger and
decidedly reddish upon the upper side of the wings. Expanse, 1.65 inch.
_Early Stages._--Mr. Edwards has figured the egg, which is different in
shape from that of the preceding species, being broader than high,
subglobular, flattened broadly at the base, green in color, and almost
devoid of sculpturings upon its surface. Of the other stages we know
nothing.
Henshaw's Butterfly ranges through southern Colorado into Mexico.
(3) =Neonympha phocion=, Fabricius, Plate XXV, Fig. 7, ♂, _under side_;
Plate III, Fig. 8, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 10 and 11 (The Georgian
Satyr).
_Butterfly._--The upper side is immaculate gray; beneath pale, with two
ferruginous transverse lines. Between these lines is a ferruginous line
on each wing, rudely describing a circle. In the circle on the fore wing
are three or four eye-spots with a blue pupil and a yellow iris; in the
circle on the hind wing are six eye-spots which are oblong and have the
pupil oval. Expanse, 1.25 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been fully described, and are not unlike
those of other species of the genus. The caterpillar feeds on grasses.
The insect ranges from New Jersey to the Gulf of Mexico as far west as
Texas.
(4) =Neonympha eurytus=, Fabricius, Plate XXV, Fig. 4, ♂; Plate III,
Figs. 3, 6, 10, 13, 14, _larva_; Plate IV, Fig. 28, _chrysalis_ (The
Little Wood-satyr).
_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished from other species in our fauna by
the presence of two more or less perfectly developed ocelli on the upper
side of the fore wing and also of the hind wing. Expanse, 1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--This is a rather common butterfly, the larval stages of
which have been fully described by various authors. The egg is even
taller in proportion to its breadth than that of _N. gemma_, which it
otherwise closely resembles in outline and sculpturing. The caterpillar
is pale brown, conformed in general form to that of other species of the
genus, but somewhat stouter. It feeds on grasses. The chrysalis is pale
brown, mottled with darker brown.
The insect ranges through Canada and the United States to Nebraska,
Kansas, and Texas.
(5) =Neonympha mitchelli=, French, Plate XXV, Fig. 6, ♂, _under side_
(Mitchell's Satyr).
_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished from the other species of the genus
by the eye-spots on the under side of the wings, four on each of the
primaries and six on each of the secondaries, arranged in a straight
series on the outer third, well removed from the margin. These spots are
black, ringed about with yellow and pupiled with blue.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
The species is local, and thus far is recorded only from northern New
Jersey, near Lake Hopatcong, and the State of Michigan. No doubt it
occurs elsewhere, but has been overlooked by collectors.
(6) =Neonympha sosybius=, Fabricius, Plate XXV, Fig. 5, ♂, _under side_
(The Carolinian Satyr).
_Butterfly._--The upper surface is immaculate dark mouse-gray. On the
under side the wings are paler, with three transverse undulatory lines,
one defining the basal, the other the median area, and one just within
the margin. Between the last two are rows of ocelli. The spots in these
rows are obscure, except the first on the primaries and the second and
last two on the secondaries, which are black, ringed about with yellow
and pupiled with blue.
The female is like the male, but a trifle larger.
_Early Stages._--These have been described by Edwards, French, and
Scudder, and do not differ strikingly from those of other species.
The species ranges from the latitude of New Jersey southward, throughout
the southern half of the Mississippi Valley to Mexico and Central
America.
(7) =Neonympha rubricata=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 3, ♂ (The Red Satyr).
_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished by its much redder color from all its
congeners, among which it has its closest ally in _N. eurytus_. It has
an eye-spot near the apex of the fore wing, and one near the anal angle
of the hind wing. The basal area of the primaries beneath is bright
reddish; the secondaries on this side are gray, crossed by two
transverse lines as in the preceding species, and a double submarginal
line. On the fore wings the double submarginal line is repeated, and in
addition there is another line which runs upward from just before the
inner angle to the costa, at about one third of its length from the
apex. The eye-spots of the upper side reappear below, and in addition
there is another near the outer angle of the secondaries, and a few
silvery well-defined ocelli between the two on the secondaries.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
The Red Satyr is found in Texas, Arizona, Mexico, and Central America.
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| EXPLANATION OF PLATE XXV |
| |
| 1. _Satyrodes canthus_, Boisd.-Lec., |
| ♂. |
| 2. _Neonympha gemma_, Hübner, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 3. _Neonympha rubricata_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 4. _Neonympha eurytus_, Fabricius, ♂. |
| 5. _Neonympha sosybius_, Fabricius, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 6. _Neonympha mitchelli_, French, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 7. _Neonympha phocion_, Fabricius, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 8. _Neonympha henshawi_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 9. _Coenonympha california_, Dbl.-Hew., |
| var. _galactinus_, Boisd., ♂. |
| 10. _Coenonympha california_, Dbl.-Hew., |
| var. _eryngii_, Henry Edwards, ♂. |
| 11. _Coenonympha ochracea_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 12. _Coenonympha ochracea_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 13. _Coenonympha inornata_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 14. _Coenonympha california_, Dbl.-Hew., |
| ♀. |
| 15. _Neominois ridingsii_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 16. _Neominois dionysius_, Scudder, ♂. |
| 17. _Erebia magdalena_, Strecker, ♂. |
| 18. _Erebia sofia_, Strecker, _ethela_, |
| Edwards, ♀. |
| 19. _Erebia discoidalis_, Kirby, ♂. |
| 20. _Erebia tyndarus_, var. _callias_, |
| Edwards, ♂. |
| 21. _Coenonympha ampelos_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 22. _Coenonympha kodiak_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 23. _Erebia disa_, var. _mancinus_, |
| Dbl.-Hew., ♂. |
| 24. _Coenonympha haydeni_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 25. _Coenonympha elko_, Edwards, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 26. _Coenonympha elko_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 27. _Coenonympha pamphiloides_, Reakirt, |
| ♀. |
| 28. _Erebia epipsodea_, Butler, ♂. |
| 29. _Coenonympha inornata_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 30. _Coenonympha ampelos_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 31. _Coenonympha pamphiloides_, Reakirt, |
| ♂. |
| |
| [Illustration PLATE XXV.] |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
Genus COENONYMPHA, Westwood
(The Ringlets)
"There is a differency between a grub and a butterfly; yet your
butterfly was a grub."--SHAKESPEARE.
_Butterfly._--Small butterflies. The costal, median, and submedian veins
are all strongly swollen. The palpi are very heavily clothed with hairs,
the last joint quite long and porrect. The antennæ are short, delicate,
gradually but distinctly clubbed. The eyes are naked. Both wings on the
outer margin are evenly rounded.
_Egg._--The egg is conical, truncated, flat on the top, rounded at the
base, with the sides marked with numerous low, narrow ribs, between
which are slight cross-lines, especially toward the apex.
_Caterpillar._--The head is globular; the body is cylindrical, tapering
gradually backward, furnished in the last segment with two small
horizontal cone-shaped projections.
[Illustration FIG. 117.--Neuration of the genus _Coenonympha_.]
_Chrysalis._--Ventrally straight, dorsally convex, strongly produced in
a rounded, somewhat keeled eminence over the thorax; pointed at the end.
Generally green or light drab in color, with dark markings on the sides
of the wing-cases.
This genus is distributed throughout the temperate regions both of the
Old and the New World, and includes in our fauna a number of forms, the
most of which are peculiar to the Pacific coast.
(1) =Coenonympha california=, Doubleday and Hewitson, Plate XXV, Fig.
14, ♀; form =galactinus=, Boisduval, Plate XXV, Fig. 9, ♂; form
=eryngii=, Henry Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 10, ♂ (The California
Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--This little species is to be distinguished from its near
allies by its white color. The form _galactinus_ is the winter form; the
form _california_ the summer form. The former is characterized by the
darker color of the hind wings on the under side and the more prominent
development of the marginal ocelli. The form _eryngii_ is simply a
yellower form, with less dark shading on the under side.
_Early Stages._--These have been most carefully and beautifully worked
out by Edwards, and the reader, for a full knowledge of them, may
consult the splendid plate in "The Butterflies of North America," vol.
iii.
The species ranges from Vancouver's Island southward on the Pacific
coast and eastward into Nevada.
(2) =Coenonympha elko=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 25, ♀, _under side_;
Fig. 26, ♂ (The Elko Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--Yellow on both sides of the wings, the lower side paler
than the upper, and the basal area lightly clouded with fuscous.
_Early Stages._--Undescribed.
This species is found in Nevada and Washington.
(3) =Coenonympha inornata=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 13, ♂, _under side_;
Fig. 29, ♂ (The Plain Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--The wings on the upper side are ochreous-brown, lighter on
the disk. The costal margin of the fore wings and the outer margin of
both fore and hind wings are gray. The ocellus at the apex of the fore
wings on the under side is faintly visible on the upper side. On the
under side the fore wings are colored as on the upper side as far as the
termination of the discal area, which is marked by a narrow transverse
band of pale yellow, followed by a conspicuous ocellus. The hind wings
are gray, darkest toward the base, behind the irregular whitish
transverse band which crosses the outer portion of the disk.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
The species occurs in Montana, Minnesota, British America, and
Newfoundland. Newfoundland specimens, of which I possess a large series,
are distinctly darker in color than those taken in the Northwest. Some
recent writers are inclined to regard this as a variety of the European
_C. typhon_. I am persuaded that they are mistaken.
(4) =Coenonympha ochracea=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 11, ♂; Fig. 12, ♂,
_under side_ (The Ochre Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--Glossy ochreous, yellow above, with no markings but those
which show through from below. On the under side the wings are marked
precisely as in the preceding species, except that there are two or
three small rays on the secondaries near the base, one on the cell and
one on either side of it, of the same tint as the discal transverse
band, and in some specimens there is a series of incomplete marginal
ocelli on the hind wings.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Ochracea_ ranges from British Columbia to Arizona, as far east as
Kansas.
(5) =Coenonympha ampelos=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 21, ♂, _under side_;
Fig. 30, ♂ (The Ringless Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--Distinguished from its allies by the total absence of
ocelli on both wings, above and below. Otherwise the species is very
near _ochracea_.
_Early Stages._--These have been described with minute accuracy by
Edwards in the "Canadian Entomologist," vol. xix, p. 41.
_Ampelos_ occurs from Nevada and Montana westward to Vancouver's Island.
(6) =Coenonympha kodiak=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 22, ♀ (The Alaskan
Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--Much darker both on the upper and under sides than _C.
california_, which in many other respects it resembles. The figure in
the plate is that of the type. It is as yet rare in collections.
_Early Stages._--Nothing is known of these. It is found in Alaska.
(7) =Coenonympha pamphiloides=, Reakirt, Plate XXV, Fig. 27, ♀, _under
side_; Fig. 31, ♂ (The Utah Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--Rather larger than the other species of the genus found in
North America. Easily distinguished by the marginal row of ocelli on the
secondaries, which are always present, though often "blind," that is to
say, without a distinct dark pupil. The author of the species named it
from a supposed likeness to the European _C. pamphilus_. The resemblance
is only superficial. _C. pamphilus_ is a much smaller insect and much
more plainly marked, judging from the large series of specimens I have
received from various European localities. _Pamphilus_ has no eye-spots
on the hind wings. They are a conspicuous feature of _pamphiloides_,
more so than in any other North American species except _C. haydeni_.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Habitat, Utah and California.
(8) =Coenonympha haydeni=, Plate XXV, Fig. 24, ♂, _under side_ (Hayden's
Ringlet).
_Butterfly._--Dark immaculate mouse-gray on the upper side. On the
under side the wings are pale hoary gray, with the hind wings adorned by
a marginal series of small ocelli, black, ringed about with yellow and
pupiled with pale blue.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Hayden's Ringlet is found in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Colorado.
Genus EREBIA, Dalman
(The Alpines)
"Then we gather, as we travel,
Bits of moss and dirty gravel,
And we chip off little specimens of stone;
And we carry home as prizes
Funny bugs of handy sizes,
Just to give the day a scientific tone."
CHARLES EDWARD CARRYL.
_Butterfly._--Medium-sized or small butterflies, dark in color, wings
marked on the under side with eye-like spots; the antennæ short, with a
gradually thickened club. The eyes are naked. The costal vein of the
fore wing is generally strongly swollen at the base. The subcostal vein
is five-branched; the first two nervules generally emitted before the
end of the cell; the third nearer the fourth than the end of the cell;
the fourth and fifth nervules spring from a common stem, the fourth
terminating immediately on the apex. The lower radial is frequently
projected inwardly into the cell from the point where it intersects the
union of the middle and lower discocellular veins. The outer margins of
both wings are evenly rounded.
[Illustration FIG. 118.--Neuration of the genus _Erebia_, enlarged.]
_Egg._--Subconical, flattened at the base and at the top, the sides
marked by numerous raised vertical ridges, which occasionally branch or
intersect each other.
_Caterpillar._--The head is globular, the body cylindrical, tapering
gradually backward from the head, the last segment slightly bifurcate.
_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is formed about the roots of grass and on
the surface of the ground, either lying loosely there or surrounded by a
few strands of silk. The chrysalis is convex, both ventrally and
dorsally, humped on the thorax, produced at the head; all the
projections well rounded. The chrysalids are generally some shade of
light brown or ashen-gray, with darker stripes and spots. This genus is
arctic, and only found in the cooler regions of the North or upon
elevated mountain summits. A few species range downward to lower levels
in more temperate climates, but these are exceptional cases.
(1) =Erebia discoidalis=, Kirby, Plate XXV, Fig. 19, ♂ (The Red-streaked
Alpine).
_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished by the plain black wings, relieved by
a reddish-brown shade on the disk of the primaries on the upper side.
_Early Stages._--Hitherto undescribed.
This species is found in the far North. My specimens came from the
shores of Hudson Bay.
(2) =Erebia disa=, var. =mancinus=, Doubleday and Hewitson, Plate XXV, Fig.
23, ♂ (The Alaskan Alpine).
_Butterfly._--The wings are dark brown on the upper side. On the outer
third below the apex are three or four black ocelli, broadly ringed with
red and pupiled with white. The upper ocellus is generally bipupiled,
that is to say, the black spot is twinned, and there are two small light
spots in it. On the under side the fore wings are as on the upper side.
The hind wings are broadly sown with gray scales, giving them a hoary
appearance. The base is more or less gray, and there is a broad,
regularly curved mesial band of dark gray, which in some specimens is
very distinct, in others more or less obsolete. The female does not
differ from the male, except that the ocelli on the fore wings are
larger and more conspicuous.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This species is found in Alaska and on the mountains of British
Columbia.
(3) =Erebia callias=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 20, ♂ (The Colorado
Alpine).
_Butterfly._--Pale brown on the upper side, with a more or less
indistinctly defined broad transverse band of reddish on the outer third
of the fore wings. At the apical end of this band are two black ocelli,
pupiled with white. The fore wings on the under side are reddish, with
the costa and outer margin grayish. The ocelli on this side are as on
the upper side. The hind wings are gray, dusted with brown scales and
crossed by narrow, irregular, dark-brown subbasal, median, and
submarginal lines.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This species is not uncommon on the high mountains of Colorado and New
Mexico. It is regarded as a variety of the European _E. tyndarus_,
Esper, by many. All the specimens of _tyndarus_ in my collection, and
there are many, lack the ocelli on the fore wing, or they are very
feebly indicated on the under side. Otherwise the two forms agree pretty
closely.
(4) =Erebia epipsodea=, Plate XXV, Fig. 28, ♂ (The Common Alpine).
_Butterfly._--The wings are dark brown on the upper side, with four or
five black ocelli, pupiled with white and broadly surrounded by red near
the outer margin of the fore wings, and with three or four similar
ocelli located on the upper side of the hind wings. The spots on the
upper side reappear on the under side, and in addition the hind wings
are covered by a broad curved median blackish band.
_Early Stages._--These have been carefully described by Edwards in "The
Butterflies of North America," vol. iii, and by H.H. Lyman in the
"Canadian Entomologist," vol. xxviii, p. 274. The caterpillar feeds on
grasses.
The species ranges from New Mexico (at high elevations) northward to
Alaska. It is common on the mountains of British Columbia.
(5) =Erebia sofia= Strecker (=ethela=, Edwards), Plate XXV, Fig. 18, ♀
(Sofia).
_Butterfly._--Dark brown on the upper side, with an even submarginal
band of red spots on the primaries, and five similar spots on the
secondaries, the last two of the latter somewhat distant from each other
and from the first three, which are nearer the outer angle. On the under
side the primaries are reddish, with the submarginal band as on the
upper side, but paler. On the secondaries, which are a little paler
below than above, the spots of the upper side are repeated, but they are
yellowish-white, standing forth conspicuously upon the darker
ground-color.
_Early Stages._--Hitherto undescribed.
_Sofia_ has been found at Fort Churchill in British America, in the
Yellowstone National Park, and in a few localities in Colorado. It is
still rare in collections. The figure in the plate is that of the female
type of Edwards' _ethela_, _ethela_ being a synonym for _sofia_.
(6) =Erebia magdalena=, Strecker, Plate XXV, Fig. 17, ♂ (Magdalena).
_Butterfly._--Uniformly dark blackish-brown on both sides of the wings,
with no spots or markings.
_Early Stages._--These have been partially described and figured by
Edwards.
This species has thus far been found only in Colorado at an elevation of
from ten to twelve thousand feet above sea-level.
There are two or three other species of this obscure genus, but they are
rare boreal insects, of which little is as yet known.
Genus GEIROCHEILUS, Butler
_Butterfly._--Medium-sized butterflies, dark in color, with light
eye-like spots on the primaries and brown borders on the secondaries.
The antennæ are short, with a gradually tapering club; the palpi are
long, slender, compressed, well clothed with scales on the lower
surface. The costa of the fore wings is strongly arched, the outer
margin evenly rounded, the outer margin of the hind wings regularly
scalloped. The costal vein of the primaries is somewhat thickly swollen
at the base.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
[Illustration FIG. 119.--Neuration of the genus _Geirocheilus_.]
(1) =Geirocheilus tritonia=, Edwards, Plate XVIII, Fig. 21, ♂ (Tritonia).
_Butterfly._--The wings of the upper side are dark brown, with a
submarginal row of white-centered ocelli below the apex of the
primaries. The secondaries are marked with a submarginal band of red. On
the under side the fore wings are as on the upper side. The hind wings
have the submarginal band purplish-red, irrorated with whitish and
dark-brown scales, on the inner edge relieved by a number of imperfectly
developed ocelli, which are partially ringed about on the side of the
base by pale yellow.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Tritonia_ occurs in southern Arizona and northern Mexico.
Genus NEOMINOIS, Scudder
_Butterfly._--Medium-sized, with the costa and inner margin of the fore
wing straight, the outer margin of the same wing evenly rounded. The
hind wings have the outer margin evenly rounded, and the costal margin
quite strongly produced, or bent at an angle, just above the origin of
the costal vein. The inner margin is straight. The costal vein of the
fore wing is slightly swollen. The costal margin at the extremity of the
second costal nervule is slightly bent inward; the upper discocellular
vein is wanting; the lower radial vein is emitted from the lower
discocellular a little below the point at which it unites with the
middle discocellular. The middle discocellular of the hind wing appears
as an inward continuation of the lower radial for some distance, when it
bends upward suddenly to the origin of the upper radial. The head is
small; the antennæ are short, with a thin, gradually developed club; the
palpi are slender, compressed, well clothed with long hairs below.
[Illustration FIG. 120.--Neuration of the genus _Neominois_, enlarged.]
_Egg._--The egg is somewhat barrel-shaped, broader at the base than at
the top, with the summit rounded. The sides are ornamented with fourteen
or fifteen vertical raised ridges, which are quite broad, and sometimes
fork or run into each other. On the sides these ridges seem to be
regularly excised at their bases, and between them on the surface are
many horizontal raised cross-lines, giving the depressed surface the
appearance of being filled with shallow cells.
_Caterpillar._--The mature caterpillar has the head globular, the body
cylindrical, gradually tapering backward, and provided with two very
short conical anal horns.
_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is formed under the surface of the earth; it
is rounded, somewhat carinate, or keel-shaped, where the wing-cases
unite on the ventral side. The head is rounded, the thorax strongly
arched, the dorsal side of the abdomen very convex. On either side of
the head are small clusters of fine processes shaped somewhat like an
Indian club, the thickened part studded with little spur-like
projections. These can only be seen under the microscope.
But two species of the genus are known within our faunal limits.
(1) =Neominois ridingsi=, Edwards, Plate XXV, Fig. 15, ♂ (Ridings'
Satyr).
_Butterfly._--The upper side is well depicted in the plate. The under
side is paler than the upper side, and the basal and median areas of
both wings are profusely mottled with narrow pale-brown striæ, the
secondaries crossed by a darker mesial band, the outer margin of which
is sharply indented. Expanse, 1.50 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been beautifully ascertained, described, and
figured by Edwards in the third volume of "The Butterflies of North
America." The egg, larva, and chrysalis agree with the generic
description already given, which is based upon the researches of
Edwards.
It is found in the Mountain States of the Pacific coast.
(2) =Neominois dionysius=, Scudder, Plate XXV, Fig. 16, ♂ (Scudder's
Satyr).
_Butterfly._--Distinguished from the preceding species by the larger and
paler submarginal markings on the upper side of the wings and the pale
color of the basal tract in both wings. On the under side the median
band of the secondaries is narrower and more irregularly curved than in
_ridingsi_, with the dentations of the outer margin more sharply
produced. Expanse, 1.90 inch.
_Early Stages._--Nothing has been written on the early stages, but no
doubt they agree closely with those of the other species.
It is found in Utah, Colorado, and Arizona.
"Hast thou heard the butterflies,
What they say betwixt their wings?"
TENNYSON, _Adeline_.
Genus SATYRUS, Westwood
(The Wood-nymphs)
"Fluttering, like some vain, painted butterfly,
From glade to glade along the forest path."
ARNOLD, _Light of Asia_.
_Butterfly._--Butterflies of medium size, their wings marked with
eye-like spots, or ocelli. Upon the upper surface they are generally
obscurely colored of some shade of gray or brown, occasionally marked
with bands of yellow. On the under side the wings are generally
beautifully striated and spotted, with the eye-like spots more
prominent. The costal vein at the base is greatly swollen; the median
and submedian veins less so. The first and second subcostal nervules
arise very near the end of the cell, slightly before it. The outer
margin of the fore wing is evenly rounded; the outer margin of the hind
wing somewhat scalloped; the head small, the eyes of moderate size,
full, naked; the antennæ gradually thickening to a broadly rounded club,
which is slightly depressed; the palpi slender, compressed, profusely
clothed beneath with long hairs. The fore legs are very small.
[Illustration FIG. 121.--Neuration of the genus _Satyrus_. (After
Scudder.)]
_Egg._--Short, barrel-shaped, greatly diminishing in size on the upper
half; truncated at the summit; the sides furnished with a large number
of vertical ribs, not very high, with numerous delicate cross-lines
between them. At the summit the ribs are connected by a waved, raised
elevation.
_Caterpillar._--Head globular; body cylindrical, tapering from the
middle forward and backward; provided with short and slender diverging
anal horns.
_Chrysalis._--Shaped very much as in the genus _Debis_, from which it is
hardly distinguishable. Generally green in color.
This genus includes numerous species which are more or less subject to
varietal modifications. In the following pages I have treated as species
a number of forms which by some writers are reckoned as mere varieties.
Whether the view of those who regard these forms in the light of
varieties is correct is not perfectly plain to me, and we cannot be
sure until more extensive experiments in breeding have been carried out.
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| EXPLANATION OF PLATE XXVI |
| |
| 1. _Satyrus alope_, Fabricius, ♂. |
| 2. _Satyrus alope_, Fabricius, ♀. |
| 3. _Satyrus nephele_, Kirby, ♂. |
| 4. _Satyrus nephele_, Kirby, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 5. _Satyrus ariane_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 6. _Satyrus ariane_, Boisduval, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 7. _Satyrus oetus_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 8. _Satyrus oetus_, Boisduval, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 9. _Satyrus olympus_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 10. _Satyrus olympus_, Edwards, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 11. _Satyrus charon_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 12. _Satyrus charon_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 13. _Satyrus meadi_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 14. _Satyrus meadi_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 15. _Satyrus baroni_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 16. _Satyrus baroni_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 17. _Satyrus gabbi_, Edwards, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 18. _Satyrus pegala_, Fabricius, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 19. _Satyrus paulus_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 20. _Satyrus sthenele_, Boisduval, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| |
| [Illustration PLATE XXVI.] |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
(1) =Satyrus pegala=, Fabricius, Plate XXVI, Fig. 18, ♀, _under side_
(The Southern Wood-nymph).
_Butterfly._--The largest species of the genus in our fauna, easily
recognized by the broad yellow submarginal band on the primaries, marked
with a single eye-spot in the male and two eye-spots in the female. The
plate gives a correct idea of the under side of the wings. Expanse, 2.75
inches.
_Early Stages._--These have only been partially ascertained. The
caterpillar, like all others of the genus, feeds on grasses.
This insect is found in the Gulf States and as far north as New Jersey,
and is probably only a large Southern form of the next species.
(2) =Satyrus alope=, Fabricius, Plate XXVI, Fig. 1, ♂; Fig. 2, ♀; Plate
III, Fig. 18, _larva_ (The Common Wood-nymph).
_Butterfly._--Closely resembling the preceding species, but only two
thirds of its size. The figures in our plate give a correct idea of its
appearance. The number of the ocelli is not constant, and occasionally
specimens occur in which they are almost wanting. Several varietal forms
have been described: _S. maritima_, from Long Island and Martha's
Vineyard, in which the wings are smaller, the band inclined to
orange-yellow, and the upper side of the wings is darker than in the
typical form; and _S. texana_, from the extreme South, in which the
ground-color of the wings is paler brown, the yellow band ochreous, and
the spots on the under side of the hind wings larger than in the other
forms.
(_a_) =Satyrus alope=, form =nephele=, Kirby, Plate XXVI, Fig. 3, ♂;
Fig. 4, ♀, _under side_; Plate IV, Figs. 7, 8, _chrysalis_ (The Clouded
Wood-nymph).
This varietal form of _S. alope_, long held to be a species, but now
known to be a dimorphic variety, is characterized by the partial or
entire suppression of the yellow band on the primaries and the tendency
of the eye-spots to become obsolete. It is the Northern form of the
species, and is found in Canada, New England, and on the continent
generally, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, north of the latitude of
central New York and southward on the mountain masses of the Appalachian
ranges.
(_b_) =Satyrus alope=, form =olympus=, Edwards, Plate XXVI, Fig. 9, ♂;
Fig. 10, ♀, _under side_ (Olympus).
This form of _S. alope_ is common in the region west of the Mississippi.
The males are a trifle darker and the females a shade paler than in the
form _nephele_, which they closely approximate, and from which it would
almost be impossible to separate them without a knowledge of the country
whence they come.
(_c_) =Satyrus alope=, form =ariane=, Boisduval, Plate XXVI, Fig. 5, ♂;
Fig. 6, ♀, _under side_ (Ariane).
In _ariane_ we have a decidedly dwarfed form, in which the males and the
females are quite dark. The ocelli, though small, are persistent, well
defined, rarely showing a tendency to disappear completely. This form is
found in British America, Oregon, and the northwestern portion of the
United States.
(_d_) =Satyrus baroni=, Plate XXVI, Fig. 15, ♂; Fig. 16, ♂, _under
side_ (Baron's Satyr).
This is another form, dark on the upper side and reddish below, in which
the ocelli on the under side show a tendency to become obsolete, and in
some specimens are wholly wanting.
There are other varietal forms, one of which, named _boöpis_ by Behr, is
commonly found on the Pacific coast in northern California, Oregon, and
Washington, and the ocelli, while prominent on the upper side of the
wings, are almost obsolete below.
_Early Stages._--The early stages of _S. alope_ (typical form) and its
variety _nephele_ have been well described by several authors. The
caterpillar feeds on grasses. There is, however, a fine field for the
entomologist to work out the causes of the rather remarkable variation
to which the species is subject.
(3) =Satyrus gabbi=, Edwards, Plate XXVI, Fig. 17, ♀, _under side_
(Gabb's Satyr).
_Butterfly._--The male is dark reddish-brown, the female pale fawn. The
ocelli in both sexes are very well developed on both sides of the wings.
The anal series on the secondaries consists of three spots, of which the
one in the middle is always large. Expanse, 2.25 inches.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Gabb's Satyr is found in Oregon and Utah.
(4) =Satyrus meadi=, Plate XXVI, Fig. 13, ♀; Fig. 14, ♂, _under side_
(Mead's Satyr).
_Butterfly._--This well-marked species is comparatively small, and may
easily be distinguished from all others by the bright red on the limbal
area above and on the middle area of the primaries below. Expanse,
1.60-1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been described and figured by Edwards in
"The Butterflies of North America," vol. iii. The caterpillar is green,
marked by paler stripes and lozenge-shaped spots of pale green on the
side. The chrysalis is pale green. The egg is pale saffron. The
caterpillars feed on grass.
Mead's Satyr ranges through Colorado, Montana, Utah, and Arizona.
(5) =Satyrus paulus=, Edwards, Plate XXVI, Fig. 19, ♂, _under side_ (The
Small Wood-nymph).
_Butterfly._--A little smaller than _S. nephele_, dark brown above in
both sexes, the fore wings always with two pupilate ocelli, one near the
apex, the other near the inner angle, most conspicuously developed in
the female. The secondaries have one or two spots of the same kind near
the anal angle. On the under side the wings are pale reddish-brown,
abundantly marked by transverse striæ. The primaries are marked with
gray at the apex and on the outer margin, and have a submarginal and
submedian transverse ferruginous line, between which the ocelli are
located. The secondaries are crossed by a broad darker median band
defined inwardly and outwardly by narrow dark lines. The outer third is
pale gray, mottled with darker spots and lines, and traversed by a dark
ferruginous submarginal line. Expanse, 1.75-2.00 inches.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Paulus_ occurs in California and Nevada. It has been regarded as a
variety of _sthenele_ by some writers; but I am convinced of its
distinctness, though there is considerable resemblance.
(6) =Satyrus charon=, Edwards, Plate XXVI, Fig. 11, ♂; Fig. 12, ♀ (The
Dark Wood-nymph).
_Butterfly._--The male is dark in color; the female is paler. There are
two eye-spots on the fore wings in the usual location, indistinct on the
upper, distinct on the lower side of the wings. The under sides of the
wings are variable. In the type they are dark; in other specimens they
are paler. They may or may not have ocelli on the secondaries. The form
with obsolescent ocelli has been named _silvestris_ by Edwards. Both the
fore and hind wings are abundantly and evenly marked by little striæ,
and crossed on either side of the median area by obscure, irregular,
transverse dark lines, either one or both of which may be wanting in
some specimens. Expanse, 1.50-1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been described and beautifully figured by
Edwards in the third volume of his great work, to which the reader may
refer. The caterpillar is green, cylindrical, tapering before and
behind, marked with longitudinal pale-yellow lines. The chrysalis is
green or black, striped with narrow white lines. The egg is somewhat
firkin-shaped, flat at the top and base, vertically ribbed, and
honey-yellow. The larva feeds on grasses.
_Charon_ is found in the Northwest, ranging from British Columbia as far
as New Mexico.
(7) =Satyrus oetus=, Boisduval, Plate XXVI, Fig. 7, ♂; Fig. 8, ♂,
_under side_ (Boisduval's Satyr).
_Butterfly._--Larger than _charon_, paler on the upper side, especially
in the female sex, in which the outer third of the primaries is
reddish-fawn. On the under side the secondaries of the male are without
ocelli, or at most faint traces of ocelli appear. In the female the
ocelli near the anal angle of the secondaries are usually well
developed. Expanse, 1.60-2.00 inches.
_Early Stages._--These await description.
The species is found in northern California.
(8) =Satyrus sthenele=, Boisduval, Plate XXVI, Fig. 20, ♂, _under side_
(The Least Wood-nymph).
_Butterfly._--Quite small, superficially resembling _charon_. The female
is paler and the ocelli are larger and more distinct than in _charon_.
The distinguishing mark of this species is the irregular, dark,
twice-strangulated band of the secondaries, bordered on both sides
externally by whitish shades. This is shown in our figure. Expanse,
1.40-1.50 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
The species is Californian.
Genus OENEIS, Hübner
(=Chionobas=, _Boisd._)
(The Arctics)
"To reside
In thrilling region of thick-ribbed ice."
SHAKESPEARE.
_Butterfly._--The antennæ are short; the eyes of moderate size; the
front full, protuberant; the palpi slender; the fore wings somewhat
produced at the tip, with the outer margins rounded and the hind
margins very slightly, if at all, sinuated. The nervules of the fore
wings are slightly dilated toward the base; the hind wings are
elongated, oval, with the outer margins evenly rounded. The color of
these butterflies is some shade of brown; the outer margin is generally
lighter than the base of the wing, and is marked with black spots,
sometimes pupiled with white. The wings are generally marbled and
mottled on the underside, and sometimes crossed on the middle of the
hind wings by a broad band of darker color. The fringes are brown,
checkered with white.
[Illustration FIG. 122.--Neuration of the genus _OEneis_, enlarged.]
_Egg._--The egg is ovate-spherical, higher than broad, marked on the
side from the apex to the base with raised sculptured ridges. These eggs
are deposited, so far as we have been able to learn, on dried grass and
the stems of plants in proximity to the growing plants upon which the
young caterpillars are destined to feed.
_Caterpillar._--The head of the caterpillar when it emerges from the egg
is somewhat larger than the rest of the body, but as it passes
successive moults and attains maturity the relative thickness of the
body increases, and the adult larva tapers a little from about the
middle in either direction. The larvæ are pale green or brown, marked by
darker stripes upon the back and on the sides, the markings on the sides
being in most species more conspicuous than those on the back. The
species all feed on grasses.
_Chrysalis._--The chrysalids are stout, very slightly angulated, and are
formed, so far as we know, unattached, under stones and at the roots of
grasses. When pupating, the caterpillar often makes for itself a slight
depression or cell in the soil, in which a few threads of silk have been
deposited, though not enough to justify us in calling the structure a
cocoon.
This genus is composed of butterflies which are mainly arctic in their
habitat, or dwell upon the summits of lofty mountains, where the summer
is but brief. Only a few species are found at comparatively low
elevations, and these in British America, or the parts of the United
States immediately contiguous to the Canadian line. The most widely
known of all the species up to this time is the White Mountain
Butterfly, _OEneis semidea_, Say, a colony of which has existed probably
ever since the glacial period upon the loftiest summit of Mount
Washington, in New Hampshire. A number of species are found in the
region of the Rocky Mountains. One species, _OEneis jutta_, Hübner,
occurs in Maine, Nova Scotia, and parts adjacent. There are in all about
a score of species of this genus recognized by authors as occurring in
our fauna. In spite of the fact that these insects are boreal or arctic
in their habits, Mr. W.H. Edwards has with marvelous skill and patience
succeeded in obtaining the eggs and rearing at his home in Coalburg,
West Virginia, a number of species. We are indebted to him for more of
our knowledge of the generic characteristics of these insects, in their
early stages, than had been ascertained hitherto during a century of
investigation. His work is one of the beautiful triumphs of that
enduring zeal which is a supreme quality in the naturalist. In their
early stages all of the species show a close likeness to one another.
(1) =OEneis gigas=, Butler, Plate XXVII, Fig. 1, ♂; Fig. 2, ♀ (The
Greater Arctic).
_Butterfly._--This, one of the largest species in the genus, occurs on
Vancouver's Island. The butterfly hides among the dark mosses and upon
the trunks of prostrate trees. The males are vigilant and inquisitive,
and dart out suddenly when alarmed, or attracted by passing insects. The
females have a slower and more leisurely flight and are more readily
taken. Expanse, 2.00-2.25 inches.
_Early Stages._--Edwards has figured the egg and the caterpillar in its
first three stages, but the remaining life-history of the species awaits
investigation.
(2) =OEneis iduna=, Edwards, Plate XXVII, Fig. 4, ♂ (The Iduna
Butterfly).
_Butterfly._--This insect, which even exceeds _OE. gigas_ in size, is
found on the Coast Range in northern California. It is decidedly lighter
on the outer third of the wings than the preceding species, the male
being prevalently a pale yellowish-brown, with the basal and median
areas of the fore wing dark brown. On the under side the wings are
somewhat lighter than in the preceding species, and the transverse
lines are more distinctly marked. Expanse, 2.00-2.30 inches.
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| EXPLANATION OF PLATE XXVII |
| |
| 1. _OEneis gigas_, Butler, ♂. |
| 2. _OEneis gigas_, Butler, ♀. |
| 3. _OEneis macouni_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 4. _OEneis iduna_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 5. _OEneis jutta_, Hübner, ♀. |
| 6. _OEneis taygete_, Hübner, ♂. |
| 7. _OEneis brucei_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 8. _OEneis varuna_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 9. _OEneis ivallda_, Mead, ♂. |
| 10. _OEneis chryxus_, Dbl.-Hew., ♂. |
| 11. _OEneis semidea_, Say, ♂. |
| 12. _OEneis uhleri_, Reakirt, ♂. |
| |
| [Illustration PLATE XXVII.] |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
_Early Stages._--These have been most beautifully delineated by Edwards
in the third volume of "The Butterflies of North America."
(3) =OEneis macouni=, Edwards, Plate XXVII, Fig. 3, ♂ (Macoun's Arctic).
[Illustration FIG. 123.--Caterpillars of _OEneis macouni_ (Riley).]
_Butterfly._--This species is closely allied to the two foregoing, but
may be distinguished by the broad median band of dark brown traversing
the under side of the hind wings, as well as by other peculiarities of
marking. It lacks the bar of raised scales which is found in the male
sex about the lower part of the cell of the fore wing in most of the
species of the genus. It has been found thus far only on the north shore
of Lake Superior and at the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains in the
territory of Alberta. Expanse, 2.00-2.25 inches.
_Early Stages._--For a knowledge of these in all their minute details
the reader is again referred to the pages of the indefatigable Edwards.
(4) =OEneis chryxus=, Westwood, Plate XXVII, Fig. 10, ♂ (The Chryxus
Butterfly).
_Butterfly._--This species is widely distributed, being found in
Colorado, British Columbia, and the vicinity of Hudson Bay. It is
distinguished from other species by the darker brown color, which covers
the basal and median areas of both the fore and hind wings, leaving a
broad band of lighter brown on the outer margin. On the under side the
wings are beautifully mottled with white and dark brown. _OEneis
calais_, Scudder, is probably only a form of _chryxus_, which is
somewhat lighter in color on the base of the wings. Expanse, 1.60-1.75
inch.
_Early Stages._--The life-history is fully recorded in the pages of
Edwards.
(5) =OEneis ivallda=, Mead, Plate XXVII, Fig. 9, ♂ (Mead's Arctic).
_Butterfly._--This species is easily distinguished from all others by
the peculiar pale ashen-brown of the upper side of the wings. It is not
a common species, and is apparently restricted to the mountains of
Nevada, principally about Lake Tahoe, though it probably occurs
elsewhere. Expanse, 1.90-2.10 inches.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
(6) =OEneis varuna=, Edwards, Plate XXVII, Fig. 8, ♂ (The Varuna
Butterfly).
_Butterfly._--This species is much smaller than any of those which have
thus far been mentioned. It is found in the prairie lands of Montana,
North Dakota, and the parts of Canada adjacent. It is not uncommon about
Calgary. It is light in color on the upper side of the wings, and on the
under side it is mottled with brown, strongly marked with blackish
blotches or shades. Expanse, 1.50-1.60 inch.
_Early Stages._--These await description.
(7) =OEneis uhleri=, Reakirt, Plate XXVII, Fig. 12, ♂ (Uhler's Arctic).
_Butterfly._--This species is found in Colorado. It is redder on the
upper side than _varuna_, and the females are generally very richly
ornamented with eye-spots on the outer borders of both the fore and hind
wings. Expanse, 1.45-1.55 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been most thoroughly described and
beautifully delineated by Edwards.
(8) =OEneis jutta=, Hübner, Plate XXVII, Fig. 5, ♀ (The Nova Scotian).
_Butterfly._--This beautiful species, which is also found in Europe, is
not uncommon in the State of Maine as far south as Bangor, and occurs
also in Nova Scotia, and ranges thence westward to Ottawa and the Hudson
Bay country. It is one of the more conspicuous species of the genus, the
eye-like spots upon the wings having a very striking appearance.
Expanse, 1.80-2.10 inches.
_Early Stages._--For a thorough knowledge of these the reader may
consult the pages of Scudder and Edwards.
(9) =OEneis semidea=, Say, Plate XXVII, Fig. 11, ♂; Plate III, Figs. 1,
2, 4, 7, 15, _larva_; Plate IV, Figs. 4, 5, _chrysalis_ (The White
Mountain Butterfly).
_Butterfly._--This species has thin wings, and is much darker in color
than any of the species which have thus far been mentioned. It is
restricted in its habitat to the summit of Mount Washington, in New
Hampshire, and only reappears on the high mountains of Colorado and in
Labrador. Its life-history has been very carefully worked out. It is to
be hoped that entomologists and tourists resorting to Mount Washington
will not suffer it to disappear by reason of too wholesale a capture of
the specimens, which hover about the barren rocks on which the race has
existed since the great continental ice-sheet melted away and vanished
from the face of New England. Expanse, 1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--The curious reader is again referred for a knowledge of
these to the pages of Scudder and Edwards. They are similar to those of
other species, and the generic description which has been given must
suffice for all in this work.
(10) =OEneis brucei=, Edwards, Plate XXVII, Fig. 7, ♂ (Bruce's Arctic).
_Butterfly._--Though somewhat closely related to the last species,
Bruce's Arctic may at once be distinguished from it by the broad dark
band on the under side of the secondaries and the great translucency of
the wings, which permits a label to be read through them. It is found in
Colorado and in British Columbia at an elevation of from twelve to
thirteen thousand feet above sea-level. Expanse, 1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--All we know of these is contained in the pages of
Edwards' great work.
(11) =OEneis taygete=, Hübner, Plate XXVII, Fig. 6, ♂ (The Labrador
Arctic).
_Butterfly._--Much like _OE. brucei_, but the wings are not so
translucent as in that species, and the broad mesial band on the under
side of the hind wings is differently shaped, being more strongly
directed outward just below the costa. The figure in the plate is from a
specimen taken at Nain, in Labrador. Expanse, 1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
There are eight or nine other species of _OEneis_ in our fauna, but they
are all arctic, and most of them very rare. Those we have described and
figured will give a good idea of the genus.
IN THE FACE OF THE COLD
When the full moon hangs high overhead, the snow creaks underfoot, the
north wind roars with furious blast, and the trees of the forests crack
in the frost with a report like that of cannon, then, hanging in its
little nest on the bare branches of the wind-tossed trees, the tiny
caterpillar of the Viceroy keeps the spark of life where men freeze and
die. Nothing in the realm of nature is more wonderful than the manner in
which some of the most minute animal forms resist cold. The genera
_Erebia_ and _OEneis_, and many species of the genus _Brenthis_, are, as
we have already learned, inhabitants of the arctic regions or of lofty
Alpine summits, the climate of which is arctic. Their caterpillars often
hibernate in a temperature of from forty to fifty, and even seventy,
degrees below zero, Fahrenheit.
It has been alleged that caterpillars freeze in the winter and thaw out
in the spring, at that time regaining their vitality. Thus far the
writer is unable to ascertain that any experiments or observations have
positively decided for or against this view. A number of recorded cases
in which caterpillars are positively stated to have been frozen and to
have afterward been found to be full of vitality when thawed are open to
question.
The most circumstantial account is that by Commander James Ross, R.N.,
F.R.S., quoted by Curtis in the Entomological Appendix to the
"Narrative" of Sir John Ross's second voyage to the arctic regions. The
specimens upon which the observations were made were the caterpillars of
_Laria rossi_, a moth which is found abundantly in the arctic regions of
North America. I quote from the account: "About thirty of the
caterpillars were put into a box in the middle of September, and after
being exposed to the severe winter temperature of the next three months,
they were brought into a warm cabin, where, in less than two hours,
every one of them returned to life, and continued for a whole day
walking about; they were again exposed to the air at a temperature of
about forty degrees below zero, and became immediately hard-frozen; in
this state they remained a week, and on being brought again into the
cabin, only twenty-three came to life; these were, at the end of four
hours, put out once more into the air and again hard-frozen; after
another week they were again brought in, when only eleven were restored
to life; a fourth time they were exposed to the winter temperature, and
only two returned to life on being again brought into the cabin; these
two survived the winter, and in May an imperfect _Laria_ was produced
from one, and six flies from the other."
The foregoing account seems to verify more thoroughly the stories that
have been told than anything else I have been able to discover within
the limits of entomological literature, but does not conclude argument.
It would be interesting in these days, when methods of artificial
freezing have been so highly perfected, to undertake a series of
experiments to prove or disprove, as the case may be, the view which has
been held since the time of the ancients. There is here a field for nice
investigation on the part of some reader of this book. In making the
experiment it probably would be well to select the larvæ of species
which are known to hibernate during the winter and to be capable of
withstanding a great degree of cold.
The effect of cold suddenly applied to the chrysalids of butterflies at
the moment of pupation is often to produce remarkable changes in the
markings. The spots upon the wings of butterflies emerging from
chrysalids thus treated are frequently rendered more or less indistinct
and blurred. The dark markings are intensified in color and enlarged;
the pale markings are also in some cases ascertained to experience
enlargement. Many of the strange and really beautiful aberrations known
to collectors have no doubt been produced by the action of frost which
has occurred at the season when the larva was pupating. The species
believed by the writer to be most prolific in aberrations are species
which pupate early in the spring from caterpillars which have hibernated
or which pupate late in the autumn. Some are species found at
considerable altitudes above sea-level, where late frosts and early
frosts are apt to occur. A number of very beautiful experiments upon the
effect of cold upon the color of butterflies have been made in recent
years, and some very curious phenomena have been observed. The writer
has in his collection a considerable number of strikingly aberrant
specimens which emerged from chrysalids treated to a sudden artificial
lowering of the temperature at the critical period of pupation.
SUBFAMILY LIBYTHEINÆ (THE SNOUT-BUTTERFLIES)
"What more felicitie can fall to creature
Than to enjoy delight with libertie,
And to be Lord of all the workes of Nature,
To raigne in th' aire from th' earth to highest skie,
To feed on flowres and weeds of glorious feature,
To take whatever thing doth please the eie?"
SPENSER.
_Butterfly._--The butterflies of this family are very readily
distinguished from all others by their long projecting palpi, and by the
fact that the males have four feet adapted to walking, while the females
have six, in which respect they approach the Erycinidæ.
Only one genus is represented in our faunal region, the genus
_Libythea_.
Genus LIBYTHEA, Fabricius
(The Snout-butterflies)
[Illustration FIG. 124.--Neuration of the genus _Libythea_.]
_Butterfly._--Rather small in size, with the eyes moderately large; the
antennæ with a distinct club at the end; the palpi with the last joint
extremely long and heavily clothed with hair. The wings have the outer
margin strongly excised between the first median nervule and the lower
radial vein. Between the upper and lower radial veins the wing is
strongly produced outwardly; the inner margin is bowed out toward the
base before the inner angle. The costa of the hind wing is bent upward
at the base and excised before the outer angle; the wing is produced at
the ends of the subcostal vein, the third median nervule, and the
extremity of the submedian vein. There is also a slight projection at
the extremity of the first median nervule. Of these projections the one
at the extremity of the third median nervule is the most pronounced.
The cell of the primaries and of the secondaries is lightly closed.
_Egg._--The egg is ovoid, nearly twice as high as wide, with narrow
vertical ridges on the sides, every other ridge much higher than its
mate and increasing in height toward the vertex, where they abruptly
terminate, their extremities ranging around the small depressed
micropyle. Between these ridges are minute cross-lines.
_Caterpillar._--The caterpillar has the head small, the anterior
segments greatly swollen and overarching the head. The remainder of the
body is cylindrical.
_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is of a somewhat singular shape, the abdomen
conical, the head sharply pointed, a raised ridge running from the
extremity of the head to the middle of the first abdominal segment on
either side, and between these ridges is the slightly projecting
thoracic tubercle. On the ventral side the outline is nearly straight.
The caterpillar feeds upon _Celtis occidentalis_. Three species are
reckoned as belonging to our fauna. It is, however, doubtful whether
these species are in reality such, and there is reason to believe that
the three are merely varietal forms or races, no structural difference
being apparent in any of them, and the only differences consisting in
the ground-color of the wings.
(1) =Libythea bachmanni=, Kirtland, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 1, ♂; Fig. 2, ♂,
_under side_; Plate V, Figs. 23, 24, _chrysalis_ (The Snout-butterfly).
_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished from the following species by the
redder color of the light spots on the upper side of the wings. Expanse,
1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--The generic description must suffice for these. They
have been frequently described.
The butterfly ranges from New England and Ontario southward and westward
over the whole country as far as New Mexico and Arizona.
(2) =Libythea carinenta=, Cramer, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 3, ♂ (The Southern
Snout-butterfly).
_Butterfly._--Much like the preceding species, but readily distinguished
from it by the paler yellowish-fulvous light markings of the upper side
of the wings. Expanse, 1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have not been carefully described as yet.
_L. carinenta_ ranges from New Mexico into South America.
FAMILY II. LEMONIIDÆ
SUBFAMILY ERYCININÆ (THE METAL-MARKS)
"I wonder what it is that baby dreams.
Do memories haunt him of some glad place
Butterfly-haunted, halcyon with flowers,
Where once, before he found this earth of ours,
He walked with glory filling his sweet face?"
EDGAR FAWCETT.
_Butterfly._--Small, the males having four ambulatory feet, the females
six, in which respect they resemble the Libytheinæ, from which they may
readily be distinguished by the small palpi. There is great variety in
the shape and neuration of the wings. The genera of this subfamily have
the precostal vein on the extreme inner margin of the wing; in some
genera free at its end, and projecting so as to form a short frenulum,
as in many genera of the moths. In addition the costal vein sends up a
branch at the point from which the precostal is usually emitted. This
apparent doubling of the precostal is found in no other group of
butterflies, and is a strong diacritical mark by which they may be
recognized. They are said to carry their wings expanded when at rest,
and frequently alight on the under surface of leaves, in this respect
somewhat approaching in their habit the pyralid moths. Many of the
species are most gorgeously colored; but those which are found within
our region are for the most part not gaily marked. They may be
distinguished from the Lycænidæ not only by the peculiar neuration and
manner of carrying the wings, but by the relatively longer and more
slender antennæ.
[Illustration FIG. 125.--Neuration of base of hind wing of the genus
_Lemonias_: _PC_, precostal vein; _PC'_, second precostal vein.]
_Early Stages._--Comparatively little is known of these, though in
certain respects the larvæ and the chrysalis show a relationship to
the Lycænidæ, with which some writers have in fact grouped them, but
erroneously, as the writer believes.
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| EXPLANATION OF PLATE XXVIII |
| |
| 1. _Libythea bachmanni_, Kirtland, ♂. |
| 2. _Libythea bachmanni_, Kirtland, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 3. _Libythea carinenta_, Cramer, ♂. |
| 4. _Lemonias cythera_, Edwards, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 5. _Lemonias cythera_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 6. _Lemonias virgulti_, Behr, ♂. |
| 7. _Lemonias mormo_, Felder, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 8. _Lemonias nais_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 9. _Lemonias nais_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 10. _Lemonias duryi_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 11. _Lemonias palmeri_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 12. _Calephelis borealis_, Grote and Robinson, |
| ♂, _under side_. |
| 13. _Calephelis borealis_, Grote and Robinson, |
| ♂. |
| 14. _Calephelis nemesis_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 15. _Calephelis australis_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 16. _Calephelis coenius_, Linnæus, ♂. |
| 17. _Lemonias zela_, Butler, ♂. |
| 18. _Lemonias zela_, Butler, ♀. |
| 19. _Lemonias cleis_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 20. _Lemonias cleis_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 21. _Feniseca tarquinius_, Fabricius, ♂. |
| 22. _Eumoeus atala_, Poey, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 23. _Chrysophanus virginiensis_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 24. _Chrysophanus virginiensis_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 25. _Chrysophanus hypophloeus_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 26. _Chrysophanus editha_, Mead, ♂. |
| 27. _Chrysophanus editha_, Mead, ♀. |
| 28. _Chrysophanus epixanthe_, |
| Boisd.-Lec., ♂. |
| 29. _Chrysophanus xanthoides_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 30. _Chrysophanus xanthoides_, |
| Boisduval, ♀. |
| 31. _Chrysophanus thoë_, Boisd.-Lec., ♂. |
| 32. _Chrysophanus thoë_, Boisd.-Lec., ♀. |
| 33. _Chrysophanus helloides_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 34. _Chrysophanus helloides_, |
| Boisduval, ♀. |
| 35. _Chrysophanus gorgon_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 36. _Chrysophanus gorgon_, Boisduval, ♀. |
| 37. _Chrysophanus mariposa_, Reakirt, ♂. |
| 38. _Chrysophanus mariposa_, Reakirt, ♀. |
| |
| [Illustration PLATE XXVIII.] |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
Almost all of the species are American, and the family attains its
highest development in the tropical regions of South America.
Genus LEMONIAS, Westwood
_Butterfly._--Small, brightly colored, the sexes often differing greatly
in appearance from each other. The eyes are naked. The palpi are
produced, porrect; the last joint is short, thin, pointed, and
depressed. The antennæ are moderately long, provided with a gradually
thickening, inconspicuous club. The upper discocellular vein is wanting
in the fore wing. The middle and lower discocellulars are of equal
length. The hind wing has the end of the cell obliquely terminated by
the middle and lower discocellular veins. The apex of the fore wing is
somewhat pointed, the outward margin straight. The outward margin of the
hind wing is evenly rounded.
[Illustration FIG. 126.--Neuration of the genus _Lemonias_.]
_Egg._--Flattened, turban-shaped, with a small, depressed, circular
micropyle, the whole surface covered with minute hexagonal
reticulations.
_Caterpillar._--Short, flattened, tapering posteriorly; the segments
arched; provided with tufts of hair ranged in longitudinal series, the
hairs on the sides and at the anal extremity being long, bent outward
and downward.
_Chrysalis._--Short, suspended at the anal extremity, and held in
position by a silk girdle, but not closely appressed to the surface upon
which pupation has taken place; thickly covered with short, projecting
hair.
The citadel of this genus is found about the head waters of the Amazon,
where there are many species. Thence the genus spreads northward and
southward, being represented in the limits of our fauna by only a few
species, which are found on the extreme southern borders of the United
States.
(1) =Lemonias mormo=, Felder, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 7, ♂, _under side_ (The
Mormon).
_Butterfly._--The wings on the upper side are dark ashen-gray, with the
primaries from the base to the limbal area, and inwardly as far as the
bottom of the cell and the first median nervule, red. The wings are
profusely marked with white spots variously disposed. The under side is
accurately depicted in our plate. Expanse, 1.10 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have not been studied.
The Mormon is found in Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, and California.
(2) =Lemonias duryi=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 10, ♀ (Dury's
Metal-mark).
_Butterfly._--The only specimen as yet known is the type figured in our
plate. I doubt whether it is entitled to specific rank, and am inclined
to believe it to be a form of the succeeding species in which red has
replaced the greater part of the gray on the upper side of both wings.
Expanse, 1.25 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
The specimen came from New Mexico.
(3) =Lemonias cythera=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 4, ♀, _under side_;
Fig. 5, ♂ (Cythera).
_Butterfly._--Distinguished from _L. mormo_ by the red submarginal band
on the secondaries on the upper side, the greater prevalence of red on
the primaries, and by the tendency of the spots on the under side of the
secondaries, just after the costa, to fuse and form an elongate
pearly-white ray. The submarginal spots on the lower side of the fore
wings are smaller than in _mormo_. The sexes do not differ except in
size. Expanse, 1.00-1.30 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Cythera_ is found in Arizona and Mexico.
(4) =Lemonias virgulti=, Behr, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 6, ♂ (Behr's
Metal-mark).
_Butterfly._--Much like the preceding species on the upper side of the
wings, but darker. The hind wings on the under side are much darker than
in _L. cythera_, and the pearly-white spots relatively smaller, standing
out very distinctly on this darker ground. Expanse, .90-1.10 inch.
_Early Stages._--Undescribed.
_Virgulti_ is common in southern California and Mexico.
(5) =Lemonias nais=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 8, ♂; Fig. 9, ♀
(Nais).
_Butterfly._--The ground-color of the upper side is bright red, clouded
with fuscous on the base of the hind wings and bordered with the same
color. There is a small precostal white spot on the primaries near the
apex. The wings are profusely marked with small black spots arranged in
transverse series and bands. The fringes are checkered with white. On
the under side the wings are pale reddish, mottled with buff on the
secondaries. The black spots and markings of the upper side reappear on
the under side and stand out boldly on the lighter ground-color.
Expanse, 1.00-1.25 inch.
_Early Stages._--These are beautifully delineated in "The Butterflies of
North America," vol. ii. The egg is pale green, turban-shaped, covered
with hexagonal reticulations. The caterpillar is rather stout and short,
the first segment projecting over the head. The body is somewhat
flattened and tapering behind, covered with tufts of hairs projecting
outward and downward on all sides, only the two rows of short tufts on
the back sending their hairs upward. The color is mouse-gray, striped
longitudinally on the back with yellowish-white, the tufts more or less
ringed about at their base with circles of the same color. The chrysalis
is blackish-brown, attached at the anal end, held in place by a girdle,
but not closely appressed to the surface on which pupation has taken
place, and thickly studded with small projecting hairs. The larva lives
on the wild plum.
_Nais_ occurs from Colorado to Mexico east of the Rocky Mountains.
(6) =Lemonias palmeri=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 11, ♂ (Palmer's
Metal-mark).
_Butterfly._--Smaller than any of the preceding species. The
ground-color of the wings is mouse-gray, spotted with white; on the
under side the wings are whitish-gray, laved with pale red at the base
of the fore wings. The white spots of the upper side reappear on the
under side. Expanse, .75-.95 inch.
_Early Stages._--These are, so far as they have been worked out by
Edwards, quite similar in many respects to those of the preceding
species.
The range of the species is from Utah southward to Mexico.
(7) =Lemonias zela=, Butler, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 17, ♂; Fig. 18, ♀
(Zela).
_Butterfly._--The upper side of both sexes is delineated in the plate.
On the under side the wings are pale red, marked with a few black spots,
representing on the under side the markings of the upper side. Of these,
the spots of the median and submarginal bands are most conspicuous.
Expanse, 1.00-1.35 inch.
(_a_) =Lemonias zela=, Butler, var. =cleis=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig.
19, ♂; Fig. 20, ♀ (Cleis).
The pale variety, _cleis_, is sufficiently well represented in our plate
to need no description. On the under side it is like _L. zela_.
The species occurs in Arizona and Mexico.
Genus CALEPHELIS, Grote and Robinson
[Illustration FIG. 127.--Neuration of the genus _Calephelis_.]
_Butterfly._--Very small, brown or reddish in color, with metallic spots
upon the wings. Head small; eyes naked; antennæ relatively long,
slender, with a bluntly rounded club. Palpi very short; the third joint
small, pointed. The accompanying cut shows the neuration.
_Early Stages._--Entirely unknown.
(1) =Calephelis cænius=, Linnæus, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 16, ♂ (The Little
Metal-mark).
_Butterfly._--Very small, reddish-brown on the upper side, brighter red
on the under side. On both the upper and under sides the wings are
profusely spotted with small steely-blue metallic markings, arranged in
more or less regular transverse series, especially on the outer margin.
Expanse, .75 inch.
_Early Stages._--The life-history is unknown.
_Cænius_ is common in Florida, and ranges thence northward to Virginia
and westward to Texas.
(2) =Calephelis borealis=, Grote and Robinson, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 12, ♂,
_under side_; Fig. 13, ♂ (The Northern Metal-mark).
_Butterfly._--Fully twice as large as the preceding species. The wings
on the upper side are sooty-brown, spotted with black, and marked by a
marginal and submarginal series of small metallic spots. On the under
side the wings are light red, spotted with a multitude of small black
spots arranged in regular series. The two rows of metallic spots near
the margins are repeated more distinctly on this side. Expanse, 1.15
inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This rare insect has been taken from New York to Virginia, and as far
west as Michigan and Illinois. The only specimen I have ever seen in
life I took at the White Sulphur Springs in West Virginia. It settled on
the under side of a twig of black birch, with expanded wings, just over
my head, and by a lucky stroke of the net I swept it in.
(3) =Calephelis australis=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 14, ♂ (The
Southern Metal-mark).
_Butterfly._--The wings in the male sex are more pointed at the apex
than in the preceding species, and in both sexes are smaller in expanse.
The color of the upper side of the wings is dusky, on the under side
pale yellowish-red. On both sides the wings are obscurely marked with
dark spots arranged in transverse series. The marginal and submarginal
metallic bands of spots are as in the preceding species. Expanse, 1.00
inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Australis_ ranges from Texas and Arizona into Mexico.
(4) =Calephelis nemesis=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 15, ♂ (The Dusky
Metal-mark).
_Butterfly._--Very small,--as small as _coenius_,--but with the fore
wings at the apex decidedly pointed in the male sex. The wings are
dusky-brown above, lighter obscure reddish below. Both the primaries and
the secondaries on the upper side are crossed by a dark median band,
broader on the primaries at the costa. The metallic markings are quite
small and indistinct. Expanse, .85 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Nemesis_ occurs in Arizona and southern California.
UNCLE JOTHAM'S BOARDER
"I've kep' summer boarders for years, and allowed
I knowed all the sorts that there be;
But there come an old feller this season along,
That turned out a beater for me.
Whatever that feller was arter, I vow
I hain't got the slightest idee.
"He had an old bait-net of thin, rotten stuff
That a minner could bite his way through;
But he never went fishin'--at least, in the way
That fishermen gen'ally do;
But he carried that bait-net wherever he went;
The handle was j'inted in two.
"And the bottles and boxes that chap fetched along!
Why, a doctor would never want more;
If they held pills and physic, he'd got full enough
To fit out a medicine-store.
And he'd got heaps of pins, dreffle lengthy and slim,
Allers droppin' about on the floor.
"Well, true as I live, that old feller just spent
His hull days in loafin' about
And pickin' up hoppers and roaches and flies--
Not to use for his bait to ketch trout,
But to kill and stick pins in and squint at and all.
He was crazy 's a coot, th' ain't no doubt.
"He'd see a poor miller a-flyin' along,--
The commonest, every-day kind,--
And he'd waddle on arter it, fat as he was,
And foller up softly behind,
Till he'd flop that-air bait-net right over its head,
And I'd laugh till nigh out of my mind.
"Why, he'd lay on the ground for an hour at a stretch
And scratch in the dirt like a hen;
He'd scrape all the bark off the bushes and trees,
And turn the stones over; and then
He'd peek under logs, or he'd pry into holes.
I'm glad there ain't no more sech men.
"My wife see a box in his bedroom, one day,
Jest swarmin' with live caterpillars;
He fed 'em on leaves off of all kinds of trees--
The ellums and birches and willers;
And he'd got piles of boxes, chock-full to the top
With crickets and bees and moth-millers.
"I asked him, one time, what his business might be.
Of course, I fust made some apology.
He tried to explain, but such awful big words!
Sorto' forren, outlandish, and collegey.
'S near's I can tell, 'stead of enterin' a trade,
He was tryin' to jest enter _mology_.
"And Hannah, my wife, says she's heerd o' sech things;
She guesses his brain warn't so meller.
There's a thing they call Nat'ral Histerry, she says,
And, whatever the folks there may tell her,
Till it's settled she's wrong she'll jest hold that-air man
Was a Nat'ral Histerrical feller."
ANNIE TRUMBULL SLOSSON.
MIMICRY
Protective mimicry as it occurs in animals may be the simulation in form
or color, or both, of natural objects, or it may be the simulation of
the form and color of another animal, which for some reason enjoys
immunity from the attacks of species which ordinarily prey upon its
kind. Of course this mimicry is unconscious and is the result of a slow
process of development which has, no doubt, gone on for ages.
Remarkable instances of mimicry, in which things are simulated, are
found in the insect world. The "walking-sticks," as they are called,
creatures which resemble the twigs of trees; the "leaf-insects," in
which the foliage of plants is apparently reproduced in animate forms;
the "leaf-butterfly" of India, in which the form and the color and even
the venation of leaves are reproduced, are illustrations of mimicry
which are familiar to all who have given any attention to the subject.
Repulsive objects are frequently mimicked. A spider has been lately
described from the Indo-Malayan region, which, as it rests upon the
leaves, exactly resembles a patch of bird-lime. The resemblance is so
exact as to deceive the most sagacious, and the discovery of the
creature was due to the fact that the naturalist who happened to see it
observed, to his surprise, that what he was positive was a mass of
ordure was actually in motion. A similar case of mimicry is observable
among some of the small acontiid moths of North America. One of these is
pure white, with the tips of the fore wings dark greenish-brown. It sits
on the upper side of leaves, with its fore wings folded over, or rolled
about the hind wings, and in this attitude it so nearly approximates in
appearance the ordure of a sparrow as to have often deceived me when
collecting.
FAMILY III. LYCÆNIDÆ
(THE BLUES, THE COPPERS, THE HAIR-STREAKS)
SUBFAMILY LYCÆNINÆ
"Mark, while he moves amid the sunny beam,
O'er his soft wings the varying lusters gleam.
Launched into air, on purple plumes he soars,
Gay nature's face with wanton glance explores;
Proud of his varying beauties, wings his way,
And spoils the fairest flowers, himself more fair than they."
_Quoted as from Haworth by Scudder._
_Butterfly._--Small, in both sexes having all feet adapted to walking.
There is exceeding diversity of form in the various genera composing
this family. Many of the genera are characterized by the brilliant blue
on the upper side of the wings; in other genera shades of coppery-red
predominate. The hair-streaks frequently have the hind wings adorned
with one or more slender, elongated tails. In Africa and in Asia there
are numerous genera which strongly mimic protected insects belonging to
the Acræinæ.
_Egg._--The eggs are for the most part flattened or turban-shaped,
curiously and beautifully adorned with ridges, minute eminences, and
reticulations. Some of them under the microscope strongly resemble the
shells of "sea-biscuits" with the rays removed (see p. 4, Fig. 7).
_Caterpillar._--The caterpillars are for the most part slug-shaped,
flattened. They are vegetable feeders, save the larvæ of two or three
genera, which are aphidivorous, feeding upon mealy bugs or plant-lice.
_Chrysalis._--The chrysalids are short, compressed, attached at the anal
extremity, with a girdle or cincture about the middle, closely fastened
to the surface upon which pupation takes place.
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| EXPLANATION OF PLATE XXIX |
| |
| 1. _Chrysophanus arota_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 2. _Chrysophanus arota_, Boisduval, ♀. |
| 3. _Chrysophanus sirius_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 4. _Chrysophanus sirius_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 5. _Chrysophanus rubidus_, Behr, ♂. |
| 6. _Chrysophanus rubidus_, Behr, ♀. |
| 7. _Chrysophanus snowi_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 8. _Chrysophanus snowi_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 9. _Thecla halesus_, Cramer, ♂. |
| 10. _Thecla m-album_, Boisd.-Lec., ♂. |
| 11. _Thecla crysalus_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 12. _Thecla grunus_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 13. _Thecla autolycus_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 14. _Thecla alcestis_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 15. _Thecla acadica_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 16. _Thecla acadica_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 17. _Thecla itys_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 18. _Thecla cecrops_, Hübner, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 19. _Thecla wittfeldi_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 20. _Thecla wittfeldi_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 21. _Thecla spinetorum_, Boisduval, ♀. |
| 22. _Thecla favonius_, Smith and Abbot, ♂. |
| 23. _Thecla læta_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 24. _Thecla læta_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 25. _Thecla adenostomatis_, Henry Edwards, ♂. |
| 26. _Thecla calanus_, Hübner, ♂. |
| 27. _Thecla edwardsi_, Saunders, ♀. |
| 28. _Thecla liparops_, Boisd.-Lec., ♀. |
| 29. _Thecla damon_, Cramer, var. _discoidalis_, |
| Skinner, ♂. |
| 30. _Thecla tacita_, Henry Edwards, ♂. |
| 31. _Thecla melinus_, Hübner, form _humuli_, |
| Harris, ♂. |
| 32. _Thecla damon_, Cramer, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 33. _Thecla sæpium_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 34. _Thecla sæpium_, Boisduval, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 35. _Thecla ines_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 36. _Thecla chalcis_, Behr, ♂. |
| 37. _Thecla chalcis_, Behr, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 38. _Thecla acis_, Drury, ♂, _under side_. |
| 39. _Thecla simæthis_, Drury, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| |
| [Illustration PLATE XXIX.] |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
Genus EUMÆUS, Hübner
_Butterfly._--Medium size or small; dark in color, with the under side
and the borders of the upper sides beautifully adorned with spots having
a metallic luster. The palpi are divergent, longer in the female than in
the male. The antennæ are stout, rather short, with a gradually
thickened club. The eyes are naked. The veins on the fore wing are
stout. The accompanying cut gives a clear idea of the neuration.
_Early Stages._--Nothing is known of these.
Three species are reckoned as belonging to the genus, two of them being
found sparingly in the extreme southern limits of our fauna.
(1) =Eumæus atala=, Poey, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 22, ♂, _under side_
(Atala).
[Illustration FIG. 128.--Neuration of the genus _Eumæus_.]
_Butterfly._--Easily distinguished by the figure in the plate from all
other species except its congener _E. minyas_, Hübner, which can be
readily separated from it by its larger size. Expanse, 1.65-1.75 inch.
_Early Stages._--These await description.
_Atala_ is found in Florida and Cuba. _Minyas_ occurs in southwestern
Texas, and thence southward to Brazil.
Genus THECLA, Fabricius
(The Hair-streaks)
"These be the pretty genii of the flow'rs,
Daintily fed with honey and pure dew."
HOOD.
_Butterfly._--Small or medium-sized; on the upper side often colored
brilliantly with iridescent blue or green, sometimes dark brown or
reddish; on the under side marked with lines and spots variously
disposed, sometimes obscure in color, very frequently most brilliantly
colored.
Various subdivisions based upon the neuration of the wings have been
made in the genus in recent years, and these subdivisions are entitled
to be accepted by those who are engaged in a comparative study of the
species belonging to this great group. Inasmuch, however, as most
American writers have heretofore classified all of these insects under
the genus _Thecla_, the author has decided not to deviate from familiar
usage, and will therefore not attempt to effect a subdivision according
to the views of recent writers, which he nevertheless approves as
scientifically accurate.
_Egg._--Considerable diversity exists in the form of the eggs of the
various species included under this genus as treated in this book, but
all of them may be said to be turban-shaped, more or less depressed at
the upper extremity, with their surfaces beautifully adorned with minute
projections arranged in geometric patterns.
[Illustration FIG. 129.--Neuration of _Thecla edwardsi_. (After
Scudder.) Typical neuration of the genus.]
_Caterpillar._--The caterpillars are slug-shaped, their heads minute,
the body abruptly tapering at the anal extremity. They feed upon the
tender leaves of the ends of branches, some of them upon the leaves of
flowers of various species.
_Chrysalis._--What has been said concerning the chrysalids of the family
applies likewise to the chrysalids of this and the succeeding genera.
They lie closely appressed to the surface upon which they are formed,
and are held in place by an attachment at the anal extremity, as well as
by a slight girdle of silk about the middle. In color they are generally
some shade of brown.
(1) =Thecla grunus=, Boisduval, Plate XXIX, Fig. 12, ♂ (Boisduval's
Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The wings are brown on the upper side, lighter on the
disk; in some specimens, more frequently of the female sex, bright
orange-tawny. On the under side the wings are pale tawny, with
transverse marginal and submarginal series of small dark spots on both
wings. Two or three of the marginal spots near the anal angle are black,
each crowned with a metallic-green crescent. Expanse, 1.10-1.20 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have, in part, been described by Dyar, "Canadian
Entomologist," vol. xxv, p. 94. The caterpillar is short, flattened, the
segments arched, the body tapering backward, bluish-green, covered with
little dark warty prominences bearing tufts of hairs, obscurely striped
longitudinally with broken, pale lines, and having a diamond-shaped
shield back of the head. The chrysalis is thick and conformed to the
generic type of structure. The color is pale green, striped and dotted
with pale yellow on the abdomen. The caterpillar feeds in the Yosemite
Valley upon the young leaves of the live-oak (_Quercus chrysolepis_).
The insect is found in California and Nevada.
(2) =Thecla crysalus=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 11, ♂ (The Colorado
Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The wings on the upper side are royal purple, broadly
margined with black. On the fore wings a broad oblique black band runs
from the middle of the costa to the middle of the outer margin. At the
inner angles of both wings are conspicuous orange spots. On the under
side the wings are fawn, marked with white lines edged with brown. The
orange spots reappear on this side, but at the anal angle of the hind
wings are transformed to red eye-spots, pupiled with black and margined
with metallic green. The hind wings are tailed. Expanse, 1.50 inch.
The variety =citima=, Henry Edwards, differs in being without the orange
spots and having the ground-color of the under side ashen-gray.
Specimens connecting the typical with the varietal form are in my
possession.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Found in southern Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and southern California.
(3) =Thecla halesus=, Cramer, Plate XXIX, Fig. 9, ♂ (The Great Purple
Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The hind wings have a long tail, and are lobed at the anal
angle. The wings are fuscous, iridescent bluish-green at the base. The
body is bluish-green above. On the under side the thorax is black,
spotted with white, the abdomen bright orange-red. The wings on the
under side are evenly warm sepia, spotted with crimson at their bases,
glossed with a ray of metallic green on the fore wings in the male sex,
and in both sexes splendidly adorned at the anal angle by series of
metallic-green and iridescent blue and red spots. Expanse, 1.35-1.50
inch.
_Early Stages._--All we know of them is derived from the drawings of
Abbot, published by Boisduval and Leconte, and this is but little. The
caterpillar is said by Abbot to feed on various oaks.
It is very common in Central America and Mexico; is not scarce in the
hot parts of the Gulf States; and is even reported as having been
captured in southern Illinois. It also occurs in Arizona and southern
California.
(4) =Thecla m-album=, Boisduval and Leconte, Plate XXIX, Fig. 10, ♂ (The
White-M Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Smaller than the preceding species; on the upper side
somewhat like it; but the iridescent color at the base of the wings is
blue, and not so green as in _halesus_. On the under side the wings are
quite differently marked. The fore wing is crossed by a submarginal and
a median line of white, shaded with brown, the median line most
distinct. This line is continued upon the hind wings, and near the anal
angle is zigzagged, so as to present the appearance of an inverted M.
Near the outer angle of the M-spot is a rounded crimson patch. The anal
angle is deep black, glossed with iridescent blue. Expanse, 1.35-1.45
inch.
_Early Stages._--All we know of this pretty species is based upon the
account and drawings of Abbot made in the last century. We need better
information. According to Abbot, the caterpillar feeds on _astragalus_
and different oaks.
This species has been taken as far north as Jersey City and Wisconsin,
and ranges southward as far as Venezuela. Its citadel is found in the
live-oak hummocks of the Gulf States and the oak forests on the
highlands of Mexico and more southern countries.
(5) =Thecla martialis=, Herrich-Schäffer, Plate XXX, Fig. 18, ♀, _under
side_ (The Martial Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The insect figured in the plate, which may easily be
recognized by its under side, has been determined by Dr. Skinner to be
the above species. My specimens coming from the Edwards collection are
labeled _Thecla acis_, ♀. They were taken at Key West. A comparison with
the under side of _T. acis_ (see Plate XXIX, Fig. 38) will reveal the
great difference. Expanse, 1.00 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Habitat, southern Florida and Cuba.
(6) =Thecla favonius=, Abbot and Smith, Plate XXIX, Fig. 22, ♂ (The
Southern Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The wings are dusky-brown above, with a small pale oval
sex-mark in the male near the upper edge of the cell in the primaries.
On either side of the second median nervule, near the outer margin of
both wings, are bright orange-red patches, most conspicuous in the
female. The hind wings near the anal angle are blackish, margined with a
fine white line. On the under side the wings are marked much as in
_m-album_, but in the region of the median nervules, midway between
their origin and termination, is a rather broad transverse carmine
streak, edged inwardly with dark lines. This is largest and most
conspicuous in the female sex. Expanse, 1.00-1.15 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been described, in part, by Abbot and Smith
and Packard. The caterpillar feeds on oaks.
_Favonius_ is found in the Gulf States, and as far north as South
Carolina.
(7) =Thecla wittfeldi=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 19, ♀; Fig. 20, ♂,
_under side_ (Wittfeld's Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The figures in the plate give a correct idea of both the
upper and under sides of this insect. It is much darker in ground-color
than any of its congeners. Expanse, 1.25-1.35 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
The types which are in my possession came from the Indian River district
in Florida.
(8) =Thecla autolycus=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 13, ♀ (The Texas
Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--On the upper side resembling _favonius_, but with the
orange-red spots on the wings much broader, ranging from the lower
radial vein to the submedian in the fore wings. The carmine spots on the
under side of the wings are not arranged across the median nervules, as
in _favonius_, but are in the vicinity of the anal angle, crowning the
black crescents near the inner end of the outer margin. Expanse,
1.15-1.30 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This species is found in Texas, and is also said to have been found in
Missouri and Kansas.
(9) =Thecla alcestis=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 14, ♀ (Alcestis).
_Butterfly._--Uniformly slaty-gray on the upper side of the wings, with
the usual oval sex-mark on the fore wing of the male, and a few bluish
scales near the anal angle. The ground-color of the wings on the under
side is as above, but somewhat paler. A white bar closes the cell of
both wings. Both wings are crossed by white lines, much as in
_m-album_. The anal angle is marked with black, followed outwardly by a
broad patch of iridescent greenish-blue scales. Between the end of the
submarginal vein and the first median nervule is a black spot surmounted
with carmine, edged inwardly with black; three or four carmine crescents
similarly edged, but rapidly diminishing in size, extend as a transverse
submarginal band toward the costa. Expanse, 1.25 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Alcestis_ is found in Texas and Arizona.
(10) =Thecla melinus=, Hübner, Plate XXIX, Fig. 31, ♂; Plate XXXII, Fig.
20, ♂; Plate V, Fig. 39, _chrysalis_ (The Common Hair-streak).
[Illustration FIG. 130.--Neuration of _Thecla melinus_. (After
Scudder.) Typical of subgenus _Uranotes_.]
_Butterfly._--Much confusion has arisen from the fact that this insect
has received a number of names and has also been confounded with others.
Fig. 31 in Plate XXIX represents the insect labeled _humuli_, Harris, in
the Edwards collection; Fig. 20 in Plate XXXII represents the insect
labeled _melinus_, Hübner. There is a very large series of both in the
collection, but a minute comparison fails to reveal any specific
difference. _Humuli_ of Harris is the same as _melinus_ of Hübner; and
recent authors, I think, are right in sinking the name given by Harris
as a synonym. This common little butterfly may easily be recognized by
its plain slaty upper surface, adorned by a large black spot, crowned
with crimson between the origin of the two tails of the secondaries.
Expanse, 1.10-1.20 inch.
_Early Stages._--These are in part well known. The caterpillar feeds on
the hop-vine. _Melinus_ is found all over temperate North America, and
ranges southward into Mexico and Central America at suitable elevations.
(11) =Thecla acadica=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 15, ♂; Plate V, Fig. 35,
_chrysalis_ (The Acadian Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The male is pale slaty-gray above, with some ill-defined
orange spots near the anal angle, the usual oval sex-mark on the fore
wing. The female is like the male above; but the orange spots at the
anal angle of the hind wings are broader, and in some specimens similar
spots appear on the fore wings near the inner angle. On the under side
in both sexes the wings are pale wood-brown, adorned by a black bar at
the end of the cells, submarginal and median bands of small black spots
surrounded with white, and on the secondaries by a submarginal series of
red crescents diminishing in size from the anal angle toward the outer
angle. Near the anal angle are two black spots separated by a broad
patch of bluish-green scales. Expanse, 1.15-1.25 inch.
_Early Stages._--For a knowledge of what is known of these the reader
may consult the pages of Scudder and Edwards. The caterpillar feeds upon
willows.
It is found all over the Northern States, ranging from Quebec to
Vancouver's Island. It seems to be very common on Mount Hood, from which
I have a large series of specimens.
(12) =Thecla itys=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 17, ♀ (Itys).
_Butterfly._--The only specimen of this species known to me is figured
in the plate. It is the type. Of its early stages nothing is known. It
was taken in Arizona. Expanse, 1.25 inch.
(13) =Thecla edwardsi=, Plate XXIX, Fig. 27, ♀ _under side_; Plate V,
Fig. 29, _chrysalis_ (Edwards' Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Dark plumbeous-brown on the upper side, with a pale
sex-mark on the fore wing of the male. On the under side the wings are
paler and a trifle warmer brown, with their outer halves marked with
numerous fine white broken lines arranged in pairs, with the space
between them darker than the ground-color of the wing. The usual black
spots, green scales, and red crescents are found near the anal angle on
the under side.
_Early Stages._--For all that is known of these the reader will do well
to consult the pages of Scudder. The caterpillar feeds on oaks.
The species ranges from Quebec westward to Colorado and Nebraska, being
found commonly in New England.
(14) =Thecla calanus=, Hübner, Plate XXIX, Fig. 26, ♀; Plate V, Figs.
25, 27, _chrysalis_ (The Banded Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--On the upper side resembling the preceding species very
closely, but a trifle darker, and warmer brown. On the under side the
wings are marked by fine white lines on the outer half, which are not
broken, as in _edwardsi_, but form continuous bands. Expanse, 1.15 inch.
_Early Stages._--The caterpillar feeds on oaks. The life-history is
described with minute exactness by Scudder in "The Butterflies of New
England," vol. ii, p. 888.
This insect has a wide range, being found from the province of Quebec to
Texas and Colorado. It is common in western Pennsylvania.
(15) =Thecla liparops=, Boisduval and Leconte, Plate XXIX, Fig. 28, ♀,
_under side_; Plate V, Fig. 28, _chrysalis_ (The Striped Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Dark brown on the upper side, grayish below. The lines are
arranged much as in _T. edwardsi_, but are farther apart, often very
narrow, scarcely defining the dark bands between them. The spots at the
anal angle are obscure and blackish. Expanse, 1.15 inch.
_Early Stages._--Much like those of the allied species. Scudder, in "The
Butterflies of New England," gives a full account of them. The
caterpillar feeds on a variety of plants--oaks, willows, the wild plum,
and other rosaceous plants, as well as on the _Ericaceæ_.
It ranges through the northern Atlantic States and Quebec to Colorado
and Montana, but is local in its habits, and nowhere common.
(16) =Thecla chalcis=, Behr, Plate XXIX, Fig. 36, ♂; Fig. 37, ♀, _under
side_ (The Bronzed Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--On the upper side uniformly brown. On the under side dark,
with a narrow submarginal and an irregular median transverse band, and a
pale short bar closing the cell on both wings; a black spot at the anal
angle of the secondaries, preceded by a few bluish-green scales.
Expanse, 1.00-1.10 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Habitat, California and Utah.
(17) =Thecla sæpium=, Boisduval, Plate XXIX, Fig. 33, ♂; Fig. 34, ♀
(The Hedge-row Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Almost identically like the preceding species, except that
the wings on the upper side are a trifle redder, on the under side
paler; the lines on the under side of the wings are narrowly defined
externally by white, and the anal spots are better developed and defined
on the hind wings. Expanse, 1.20 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This species is found throughout the Pacific States, and I am inclined
to believe it identical with _chalcis_. If this should be proved to be
true the latter name will sink as a synonym.
(18) =Thecla adenostomatis=, Henry Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 25, ♂ (The
Gray Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Mouse-gray on the upper side, with a few white lines on
the outer margin near the anal angle; hoary-gray on the under side,
darker on the median and basal areas. The limbal area is defined
inwardly by a fine white line, is paler than the rest of the wing, and
on the secondaries is marked by a full, regularly curved submarginal
series of small dark lunules. Expanse, 1.30 inch.
_Early Stages._--Undescribed.
Habitat, California.
(19) =Thecla spinetorum=, Boisduval, Plate XXIX, Fig. 21, ♀ (The Thicket
Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Dark blackish on the upper side, with both wings at the
base shot with bluish-green. On the under side the wings are pale
reddish-brown, marked much as in the following species, but the lines
and spots are broader, more distinct, and conspicuous. Expanse, 1.15
inch.
_Early Stages._--This species is reported, so far, from Colorado,
California, and Washington.
(20) =Thecla nelsoni=, Boisduval, Plate XXX, Fig. 8, ♀, _under side_;
Fig. 13, ♀ (Nelson's Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Bright fulvous on the upper side, with the costa, the
outer margins, the base, and the veins of both fore and hind wings
fuscous. On the under side the wings are paler red, with an incomplete
narrow white line shaded with deep red just beyond the median area, and
not reaching the inner margin. This line is repeated on the hind wing as
an irregularly curved median line. Between it and the outer margin on
this wing are a few dark lunules near the anal angle. Expanse, 1.00
inch.
_Early Stages._--I cannot discover any account of these.
The species has been found in California and Colorado.
(21) =Thecla blenina=, Hewitson, Plate XXX, Fig. 9, ♂, _under side_
(Hewitson's Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Brown on the upper side, in some specimens bright fulvous
bordered with brown. On the under side the wings are pale red, shot with
pea-green on the secondaries and at the base of the primaries. The
markings of the under side are much as in the preceding species, but the
line on the hind wing dividing the discal from the limbal area is
broader and very white, and the spots between it and the margin more
conspicuous. Expanse, 1.12 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
It is reported from Arizona and southern California. It has been named
siva by Edwards, and the figure is from his type so labeled.
(22) =Thecla damon=, Cramer, Plate XXIX, Fig. 32, ♂, _under side_; var.
=discoidalis=, Skinner, Plate XXIX, Fig. 29, ♂; Plate V, Figs. 30, 31,
_chrysalis_ (The Olive Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--On the upper side bright fulvous, with the costa, the
outer margins, and the veins of both wings blackish, darkest at the
apex. On the under side the wings are greenish, crossed on the fore wing
by a straight, incomplete white line, and on the hind wing by a similar
irregular line. Both of these lines are margined internally by brown.
There are a couple of short white lines on the hind wing near the base,
and the usual crescentic spots and markings on the outer border and at
the anal angle. Expanse, .90-1.00 inch.
[Illustration FIG. 131.--Neuration of _Thecla damon_, enlarged. Type of
subgenus _Mitura_, Scudder.]
_Early Stages._--These have been described by several authors. The
caterpillar feeds on the red cedar (_Juniperus virginiana_, Linnæus). It
is double-brooded in the North and triple-brooded in the South.
_Damon_ ranges from Ontario to Texas over the entire eastern half of the
United States.
(23) =Thecla simæthis=, Drury, Plate XXIX, Fig. 39, ♂, _under side_
(Simæthis).
_Butterfly._--Resembling the preceding species, but the white band on
the secondaries is straight, and the outer margins are heavily marked
with brown. Expanse, .85-1.00 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This species occurs in Texas, Mexico, and southward.
(24) =Thecla acis=, Drury, Plate XXIX, Fig. 38, ♀, _under side_ (Drury's
Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The upper side of the wings is dark brown. The under side
is shown in the plate. Expanse, .90 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This very pretty species is found in the extreme southern portions of
Florida and the Antilles.
(25) =Thecla cecrops=, Hübner, Plate XXX, Fig. 7, ♂; Plate XXIX, Fig.
18, ♀, _under side_ (Cecrops).
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| |
| EXPLANATION OF PLATE XXX |
| |
| 1. _Thecla dumetorum_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 2. _Thecla dumetorum_, Boisduval, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 3. _Thecla affinis_, Edwards, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 4. _Thecla behri_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 5. _Thecla behri_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 6. _Thecla clytie_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 7. _Thecla cecrops_, Hübner, ♂. |
| 8. _Thecla nelsoni_, Boisduval, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 9. _Thecla blenina_, Hewitson, ♂, |
| _under side_. (The figure is that of the |
| type of _T. siva_, Edwards.) |
| 10. _Thecla titus_, Fabricius, ♂. |
| 11. _Thecla niphon_, Hübner, ♀. |
| 12. _Thecla irus_, Godart, ♂. |
| 13. _Thecla nelsoni_, Boisduval, ♀. |
| 14. _Thecla titus_, Fabricius, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 15. _Thecla augustus_, Kirby, ♀. |
| 16. _Lycoena fuliginosa_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 17. _Thecla eryphon_, Boisduval, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 18. _Thecla martialis_, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 19. _Lycoena pseudargiolus_, Boisd.-Lec., |
| var. _marginata_, Edwards, ♂, _under side_. |
| 20. _Lycoena pseudargiolus_, Boisd.-Lec., |
| var. _lucia_, Kirby, ♂, _under side_. |
| 21. _Thecla henrici_, Grote and Robinson, ♀. |
| 22. _Thecla niphon_, Hübner, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 23. _Lycoena couperi_, Grote, ♂. |
| 24. _Lycoena fulla_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 25. _Lycoena fulla_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 26. _Lycoena clara_, Henry Edwards, ♀. |
| 27. _Lycoena marina_, Reakirt, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 28. _Lycoena doedalus_, Behr, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 29. _Lycoena icarioides_, Boisduval, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 30. _Lycoena enoptes_, Boisduval, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 31. _Lycoena glaucon_, Edwards, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 32. _Lycoena pseudargiolus_, Boisd.-Lec., ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 33. _Lycoena isola_, Reakirt, ♂, |
| _under side_. (The figure is that of the type of |
| _L. aloe_, Edwards.) |
| 34. _Lycoena couperi_, Grote, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 35. _Lycoena antiacis_, Boisduval, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 36. _Lycoena antiacis_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 37. _Lycoena pheres_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| 38. _Lycoena isola_, Reakirt, ♀. |
| 39. _Lycoena glaucon_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 40. _Lycoena aster_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 41. _Lycoena antiacis_, Boisduval, ♀. |
| 42. _Lycoena pheres_, Boisduval, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 43. _Lycoena xerxes_, Boisduval, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 44. _Lycoena sagittigera_, Felder, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 45. _Lycoena ammon_, Lucas, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 46. _Lycoena aster_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 47. _Lycoena aster_, Edwards, ♂, |
| _under side_. |
| 48. _Lycoena scudderi_, Edwards, ♂. |
| 49. _Lycoena scudderi_, Edwards, ♀. |
| 50. _Lycoena lygdamas_, Doubleday, ♀, |
| _under side_. |
| 51. _Lycoena enoptes_, Boisduval, ♂. |
| |
| [Illustration PLATE XXX.] |
+--------------------------------------------------------------+
_Butterfly._--Dark brown, glossed at the base of the wings and on the
inner margin of the secondaries with blue. The under side is well
delineated in the plate. Expanse, 1.00 inch.
_Early Stages._--These await description.
_Cecrops_ is common in the Southern States, and has been taken as far
north as West Virginia, Kentucky, and southern Indiana.
(26) =Thecla clytie=, Edwards, Plate XXX, Fig. 6, ♀ (Clytie).
_Butterfly._--Blue above, with the apical two thirds of the fore wings
black. The wings on the under side are white, with the usual marginal
and transverse markings quite small and faint. Expanse, .90 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Habitat, Texas and Arizona.
(27) =Thecla ines=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 35, ♂ (Ines).
_Butterfly._--Much like the preceding species, but smaller, with the
secondaries marked with blackish on the costa. On the under side the
wings are slaty-gray, with numerous fine lines and a broad median dark
shade on the hind wings, running from the costa to the middle of the
wing. Expanse, .75 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Ines_ is found in Arizona.
(28) =Thecla behri=, Edwards, Plate XXX, Fig. 4, ♂; Fig. 5, ♂, _under
side_ (Behr's Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Both sides are well displayed in the plate, and therefore
need no particular description. Expanse, 1.10 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
This species is found in northern California and Oregon, and eastward to
Colorado.
(29) =Thecla augustus=, Kirby, Plate XXX, Fig. 15, ♀ (The Brown Elfin).
_Butterfly._--Brown on the upper side; paler on the under side. The fore
wings are marked by a straight incomplete median band, and the hind
wings by an irregularly curved median band or line. Back of these lines
toward the base both wings are darker brown. Expanse, .90 inch.
_Early Stages._--These are not well known. Henry Edwards describes the
caterpillar as "carmine-red, covered with very short hair, each segment
involute above, with deep double foveæ." The chrysalis is described by
the same observer as being "pitchy-brown, covered with very short
bristly hair, the wing-cases paler." The food-plant is unknown.
This species is boreal in its haunts, and is found in New England and
northward and westward into the British possessions.
(30) =Thecla irus=, Godart, Plate XXX, Fig. 12, ♂; Plate V, Figs. 32-34,
_chrysalis_ (The Hoary Elfin).
_Butterfly._--Grayish-brown on the upper side. The wings on the under
side are of the same color, paler on the outer margins, and darker
toward the base. The species is subject to considerable variation. The
variety _arsace_, Boisduval, has the hind wings marked with reddish near
the anal angle, and the outer margin below marked with hoary-purple. The
usual small crescentic spots appear on the outer margin of the hind
wings, or they may be absent. Expanse, 1.10 inch.
_Early Stages._--An epitome of all that is known is to be found in "The
Butterflies of New England." The caterpillar feeds on young plums just
after the leaves of the blossom have dropped away.
The species is rather rare, but has been found from the Atlantic to the
Pacific in the latitude of New England.
(31) =Thecla henrici=, Grote and Robinson, Plate XXX, Fig. 21, ♀ (Henry's
Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Much like the preceding species on the upper side, but
with the outer half of the wings broadly reddish-brown. The secondaries
on the under side are broadly blackish-brown on the basal half, with the
outer margin paler. The division between the dark and light shades is
irregular and very sharply defined, often indicated by a more or less
perfect irregularly curved median white line. Expanse, 1.00-1.10 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been described by Edwards in the "American
Naturalist," vol. xvi, p. 123. The habits of the larva are identical
with those of the preceding species.
It occurs from Maine to West Virginia, but is rare.
(32) =Thecla eryphon=, Boisduval, Plate XXX, Fig. 17, ♀, _under side_
(Eryphon).
_Butterfly._--Closely resembling the following species both on the upper
and under side of the wings, but easily distinguished by the fact that,
on the under side of the fore wings, the inner of the two dark bands on
the outer third of the wing is not sharply angulated below the third
median nervule, as in _T. niphon_, but is more even, and in general
parallel with the submarginal line. Expanse, 1.15 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have not been described.
_Eryphon_ replaces the Eastern _T. niphon_ on the Pacific coast.
(33) =Thecla niphon=, Hübner, Plate XXX, Fig. 11, ♀; Fig. 22, ♀,
_under side_; Plate V, Figs. 38, 40, _chrysalis_ (The Banded Elfin).
_Butterfly._--Reddish-brown on the upper side. The under side is
accurately depicted in the plate. Expanse, 1.10 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been elaborately described by Scudder in his
great work. The caterpillars feed upon pine.
The Banded Elfin is found from Nova Scotia to Colorado, in the Northern
States, where its food-plant occurs, but is never abundant.
[Illustration FIG. 132.--Neuration of _Thecla niphon_, enlarged.
Typical of subgenus _Incisalia_, Minot.]
(34) =Thecla affinis=, Edwards, Plate XXX, Fig. 3, ♀, _under side_ (The
Green-winged Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--On the upper side closely resembling the following
species. On the under side the wings are uniformly bright green.
Expanse, 1.00 inch.
_Early Stages._--These await description.
The types came from Utah. I also have specimens from California.
(35) =Thecla dumetorum=, Boisduval, Plate XXX, Fig. 1, ♂; Fig. 2, ♂,
_under side_ (The Green White-spotted Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Dark fawn-color above, sometimes tinged externally with
reddish. On the under side both wings are green, the primaries having a
short straight band of white spots on the outer third, and the
secondaries a small white spot on the costa beyond the middle, and two
or three conspicuous white spots near the anal angle. Expanse, 1.10
inch.
_Early Stages._--The eggs are laid on the unopened flower-heads of
_Hosackia argophylla_. This is all we know of the life-history.
The species ranges from Oregon and California eastward as far as
Colorado.
(36) =Thecla læta=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 23, ♂; Fig. 24, ♂,
_under side_ (The Early Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--The wings brown, glossed with bright blue above; on the
under side pale fawn, with a band of pale-red spots on both wings about
the middle, and a few similar spots on the outer and inner margins of
the hind wings. Expanse, .75 inch.
_Early Stages._--Only the egg, described and figured by Scudder, is
known.
It ranges from Quebec to southern New Jersey, and westward to West
Virginia, and has been taken on Mount Graham, in Arizona. It appears in
early spring. It is still rare in collections.
(37) =Thecla titus=, Fabricius, Plate XXX, Fig. 10, ♂; Fig. 14, ♂,
_under side_; Plate V, Fig. 37, _chrysalis_ (The Coral Hair-streak).
_Butterfly._--Uniformly gray-brown on the upper side. Some specimens of
the female have a few red spots at the anal angle of the hind wing. On
the under side the wings are colored as on the upper side; but the hind
wings have a conspicuous submarginal band of coral-red spots on their
outer third. Expanse, 1.30 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been well described by several authors. The
fullest account is given by Scudder. The caterpillar feeds on the leaves
of the wild cherry and the wild plum.
The insect occurs from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from Maine to
Georgia. It is not very common.
There are some ten or more other species of this genus found in our
fauna, but the species figured in our plates will suffice to give a good
idea of the genus.
[Illustration FIG. 133.--Neuration of _Thecla titus_, enlarged. Typical
of subgenus _Strymon_, Hübner.]
Genus FENISECA, Grote
(The Harvesters)
"Upon his painted wings, the butterfly
Roam'd, a gay blossom of the sunny sky."
WILLIS G. CLARK.
_Butterfly._--Small, bright orange-yellow, on the upper side spotted
with black, on the under side more or less mottled and shaded with gray
and brown, the markings of the upper side reappearing. The cut shows the
neuration, which need not be minutely described.
_Egg._--Subglobular, much wider than high, its surface smooth, marked
with a multitude of very fine and indistinct raised ridges, giving it
the appearance of being covered by very delicate polygonal cells.
_Caterpillar._--In its mature stage the caterpillar is short,
slug-shaped, covered with a multitude of bristling hairs, upon which it
gathers the white exudations or scales of the mealy bugs upon which it
feeds.
[Illustration FIG. 134.--Neuration of the genus _Feniseca_, enlarged.]
_Chrysalis._--Small, brown in color; when viewed dorsally showing a
remarkable and striking likeness to the face of a monkey, a singular
phenomenon which also appears even more strikingly in chrysalids of the
allied genus _Spalgis_, which is found in Africa and Asia.
But one species of the genus is known.
(1) =Feniseca tarquinius=, Fabricius, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 21, ♂; Plate V,
Figs. 45, 46, _chrysalis_ (The Harvester).
_Butterfly._--The upper side of the wings is well depicted in the plate.
There is considerable variation, however, in the size of the black
markings upon the upper surface, and I have specimens in which they
almost entirely disappear. On the under side the wings are paler; the
spots of the upper side reappear, and, in addition, the hind wings are
mottled profusely with small pale-brown spots. Expanse, 1.30 inch.
_Early Stages._--What has been said of these in the description of the
genus will suffice for the species.
This curious little insect, which finds its nearest allies in Asia and
Africa, ranges all over the Atlantic States from Nova Scotia to the
Carolinas, and throughout the valley of the Mississippi.
Genus CHRYSOPHANUS, Doubleday
(The Coppers)
"Atoms of color thou hast called to life
(We name them butterflies) float lazily
On clover swings, their drop of honey made
By thee, dear queen, already for their need."
MARY BUTTS.
_Butterfly._--Small butterflies, with the upper side of the wings some
shade of coppery-red or orange, frequently glossed with purple. On the
under side the wings are marked with a multitude of small spots and
lines. The neuration of the wing is delineated in the figure herewith
given, and needs no further description.
_Egg._--The eggs are hemispherical, flattened on the base, the upper
surface deeply pitted with polygonal or somewhat circular depressions.
[Illustration FIG. 135.--Neuration of _Chrysophanus thoë_, enlarged.
Typical of the genus.]
_Caterpillar._--The caterpillars, so far as known, are decidedly
slug-shaped, thickest in the middle, tapering forward and backward, and
having a very small head.
_Chrysalis._--The chrysalids are small, rounded at either end, and held
in place by a girdle of silk a little forward of the middle.
This genus is found in the temperate regions of both the New and the Old
World, and also in South Africa.
(1) =Chrysophanus arota=, Boisduval, Plate XXIX, Fig. 1, ♂; Fig. 2, ♀
(Arota).
_Butterfly._--The plate gives a good idea of the upper side of the wings
in both sexes. On the under side the fore wings are pale gray in the
male and pale red in the female, with the outer margin lavender. The
spots of the upper side reappear on the disk. The hind wings on the
under side are purplish-gray on the inner two thirds and paler gray on
the outer third, with many black spots on the disk, margined with white.
Expanse, 1.10-1.25 inch.
_Early Stages._--These have been partially described by Dyar in the
"Canadian Entomologist," vol. xxiii, p. 204. The caterpillar feeds on
the wild gooseberry (_Ribes_).
_Arota_ is a Californian species.
(2) =Chrysophanus virginiensis=, Edwards, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 23, ♂; Fig.
24, ♀ (The Nevada Copper).
_Butterfly._--Allied to the preceding species, but easily distinguished
by the submarginal white bands of crescent-shaped spots on the under
side. These are particularly distinct on the hind wings. Expanse,
1.25-1.30 inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
_Virginiensis_, so named because the first specimens came from Virginia
City, ranges in California, Nevada, and Colorado.
(3) =Chrysophanus xanthoides=, Boisduval, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 29, ♂; Fig.
30, ♀ (The Great Copper).
_Butterfly._--The student will easily recognize it by its larger size,
it being the largest species of the genus in North America, and by its
creamy-white under surface, spotted with distinct small black spots, in
large part reproducing the spots of the upper side. Expanse, 1.50-1.65
inch.
(4) =Chrysophanus editha=, Mead, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 26, ♂; Fig. 27, ♀
(Editha).
_Butterfly._--This is a much smaller species than the last, which it
somewhat resembles on the upper side. On the under side it is wholly
unlike _xanthoides_, the wings being pale pearly-gray, pale ochreous on
the outer margins, the spots of the fore wings black and of the hind
wings ochreous, narrowly margined with white or fine black lines.
Expanse, 1.10-1.25 inch.
_Early Stages._--Entirely unknown.
This species is found in Nevada.
(5) =Chrysophanus gorgon=, Boisduval, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 35, ♂; Fig. 36,
♀ (Gorgon).
_Butterfly._--Somewhat like the preceding species, but with the fore
wings of the male redder on the upper side, and of the female more
broadly mottled with pale red, the spots in some specimens inclining to
buff. The under side of the wings is white, marked with the usual series
of black spots. The secondaries have a marginal series of elongated
pale-red spots, tipped at either end with black. Expanse, 1.25-1.30
inch.
_Early Stages._--We as yet know nothing of these.
_Gorgon_ is found in California and Nevada.
(6) =Chrysophanus thoë=, Boisduval, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 31, ♂; Fig. 32,
♀; Plate V, Fig. 50, _chrysalis_ (The Bronze Copper).
_Butterfly._--The plate makes a description of the upper side of the
wings unnecessary. On the under side the fore wing in both sexes is
bright tawny-red, pale gray at the apex; the hind wings are bluish-gray,
with a broad band of carmine on the outer margin. Both wings are
profusely adorned with small black spots. Expanse, 1.30-1.40 inch.
_Early Stages._--These are only partially known. The caterpillar feeds
on _Rumex_.
It is not uncommon in northern Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, and
ranges from Maine to Kansas and Colorado.
(7) =Chrysophanus mariposa=, Reakirt, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 37, ♂; Fig. 38,
♀ (Reakirt's Copper).
_Butterfly._--Small, with a broad dusky band on the hind wing of the
male and on the fore wing of the female. The male is purplish-red above,
the female bright red, with the usual spots. On the under side the
ground-color of the fore wings is pale red, of the hind wings clear
ashen-gray, with the characteristic markings of the genus. Expanse, 1.10
inch.
_Early Stages._--Undescribed.
The insect ranges from British Columbia into northern California,
Montana, and Colorado.
(8) =Chrysophanus helloides=, Boisduval, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 33, ♂; Fig.
34, ♀ (The Purplish Copper).
_Butterfly._--The male has the fore wings broadly shot with iridescent
purple. The female is well delineated in the plate. On the under side
the fore wings are pale red, the hind wings reddish-gray, with a
marginal row of brick-red crescents. The usual black spots are found on
both wings. Expanse, 1.15-1.30 inch.
_Early Stages._--We know next to nothing of these.
The Purplish Copper is found in the Northwestern States from northern
Illinois and Iowa to Vancouver's Island.
(9) =Chrysophanus epixanthe=, Boisduval and Leconte, Plate XXVIII, Fig.
28, ♂ (The Least Copper).
_Butterfly._--The smallest species of the genus in North America. On the
upper side the wings of the male are dark fuscous, shot with purple, and
having a few red spots near the anal angle of the secondaries. The
female on the upper side is pale gray, and more profusely marked with
black spots. On the under side the wings are light gray, bluish at the
base, and marked with the usual spots. Expanse, .85-.95 inch.
_Early Stages._--Little is known of these.
This is a Northern species, ranging from Newfoundland, where it is
common, to British Columbia, never south of the latitude of New England.
(10) =Chrysophanus hypophlæas=, Boisduval, Plate XXVIII, Fig. 25, ♂;
Plate V, Fig. 49, _chrysalis_ (The American Copper).
_Butterfly._--This is one of the commonest butterflies in the United
States. The figure in the plate will serve to recall it to the mind of
every reader. It is abundant everywhere except in the Gulf States, and
ranges as far north as Manitoba and the Hudson Bay region. Expanse, 1.00
inch.
_Early Stages._--These have often been described. The caterpillar, which
is small and slug-shaped, feeds upon the common sorrel (_Rumex
acetosella_).
(11) =Chrysophanus snowi=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 7, ♂; Fig. 8, ♀
(Snow's Copper).
_Butterfly._--This is a medium-sized species, easily recognized by the
even, rather wide black border on both wings on the upper side, and the
dirty-gray color of the hind wings on the under side. Expanse, 1.15-1.25
inch.
_Early Stages._--Unknown.
Snow's Copper, which is named in honor of the amiable Chancellor of the
University of Kansas, occurs in Colorado at high elevations, and is
reported from Alberta and British Columbia.
(12) =Chrysophanus rubidus=, Behr, Plate XXIX, Fig. 5, ♂; Fig. 6, ♀
(The Ruddy Copper).
_Butterfly._--This is a rather large species. The male on the upper side
is prevalently pale, lustrous red, with a narrow black marginal band and
uniformly conspicuous white fringes. The upper side of the female is
accurately depicted in the plate. On the under side the wings are
shining white, the secondaries immaculate. Expanse, 1.30-1.50 inch.
_Early Stages._--These are altogether unknown.
This exceedingly beautiful species is found in Oregon, Nevada, and
Montana.
(13) =Chrysophanus sirius=, Edwards, Plate XXIX, Fig. 3, ♂; Fig. 4, ♀
(Sirius).