This insect, which is the English Painted Lady, might at first sight
be taken for a faded Atalanta. The caterpillar lives generally solitary
on hollyhock, nettle, or mallow, curling itself up in a leaf It is of a
grey-brown colour, thickly sprinkled with hairs, a yellow line fringed
by reddish dots runs along each side. It is found in most localities
up to a considerable elevation, from February till well on into the
summer. The butterfly is of a tawny red colour, shading off to brown
at the base of the fore-wings, with dark markings and oblong black
spots. The apex of the wings is marked and edged in white, similar to
the Atalanta. The hind-wings are of the same tawny red colour, having
a line of five round black spots running along each lower margin.
The fore-wings are marked on the under-side as above, the colour,
however, being redder. The hind-wings are pale buff, olive brown, and
white, having four or five blue-black eyes near the lower margin, the
two centre eyes being smaller than the others, which are circled by
black and white. Its flight is very swift, and its erratic and rapid
gyrations from side to side make it a difficult specimen to net.
PYRAMEIS v. HUNTERA.