Butterflies and Moths Part 20

The colour of the caterpillar (Plate VIII, fig. 3) is black, and there are two yellow lines along the back, separated by a black stripe, also one yellowish line on each side. Its body is adorned with reddish-brown spines, two of which, situated just behind the head, are longer than the others.

The chrysalis (Plate VIII, fig. 9) is greyish, marked with metallic spots, and has a number of angular projections representing the spines of the larva.

_Paphia_ is to be met with in woods in all parts of England and Wales.

It has also been observed in Ireland, but is rarely seen in Scotland.

_The Greasy Fritillary_ (_Melitaea Aurinia_)

Unlike the other Fritillaries, this species (Plate III, fig. 3) exhibits a variety of shades on the upper surface. A broad band of sienna brown stretches across each wing, near to and parallel with the hind margin.

The other parts of the wings are marked with patches of sienna, orange, and yellow, separated by black lines and bands. The margins are all black, and inside the broader margin of the hind wing is a row of six very pale yellow spots. The broad sienna band of the hind wing is also divided by narrow black lines into seven parts, six of which have black centres.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 73.--THE GREASY FRITILLARY--UNDER SIDE.]

The under surface of the fore wings has indefinite yellowish and tawny patches, which look as if they had been greased and smeared. The hind wings are marked with pale yellow and deep orange; a broad band of the latter, near the hind margin, is divided into segments, each of which has a yellow spot with black in the centre.

This is a very local insect, although it is widely distributed throughout England and Wales. It also occurs sparingly in Scotland and Ireland. Its food plants are the honeysuckle (_Lonicera_ _Periclymenum_), devil's-bit scabious (_Scabiosa succisa_), and the plantain (_Plantago_); and its chief resorts are damp meadows and marshy places, where these plants (more especially the scabious) abound.

The b.u.t.terfly appears about the end of April or in June.

The caterpillars emerge from the eggs towards the end of the latter month, and always feed in groups under the cover of a silken web. Like the preceding species they hybernate during the winter, and commence feeding again in the spring. They are fully grown about the end of April.

In colour the caterpillar is velvety black, dotted with white, and its body is covered with short bristly spines. When fully fed it seeks the shelter of a curled leaf or dense herbage, suspends itself by the hind claspers to a silken carpet, and then changes to a creamy white chrysalis with black dots.

_The Glanville Fritillary_ (_Melitaea Cinxia_)

The pattern of the upper side of this Fritillary (Plate III, fig. 4) is very similar to that of _Aurinia_, but the ground colour is a uniform tawny brown, and the fringes of the wings are of a very pale straw colour, barred with black.

The under side of the fore wings is tawny brown, with straw-coloured tips bearing black markings. The hind wings have four alternate bands of brown and straw colour, and a patch of straw colour at the base. The marginal yellow band has six or seven black spots. The brown band next to it is divided into six segments with black borders, each with a black spot. The next yellow band has also a row of black spots. The inner fulvous band is very irregular; and inside this is the yellow base with six spots.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 74.--THE GLANVILLE FRITILLARY--UNDER SIDE.]

This is another local insect--very local indeed, for it seems to have been found only in a few spots outside its head quarters, the Isle of Wight. Those in search of it should carefully scan the rough cliffy parts of the island, wherever the species of plantain (_Plantago Coronopus_ and _P. maritima_) are plentiful, these being the food plants of the larvae. It first appears on the wing in May, but may be found till the end of June.

The caterpillars, which are black and spiny, with reddish head and legs, begin to feed in August, and as soon as the chilly weather sets in they hybernate in groups under the cover of a tent constructed by binding together leaves or blades of gra.s.s. In the spring they start out again, and feed till the end of April, at which time they change to dark brownish and smooth chrysalides.

_The Heath Fritillary_ (_Melitaea Athalia_)

Both the upper and under sides of this b.u.t.terfly are shown on Plate III (figs. 5 and 6), and it will be observed from these that its general appearance is very similar to that of _Cinxia_.

The upper surface is of the same tawny brown, barred and striped with black, and the fringes of the wings are pale yellow, interrupted by small patches of black.

The under surface of the fore wings has the same ground colour with the exception of the tips, which are yellow; and the whole is marked with black, as in the ill.u.s.tration. The hind wings are pale yellow, with two broad bands of brown corresponding with those of _Cinxia_; but a series of black double arches along the hind margin and the _absence_ of rows of black spots serve to distinguish this species from the last.

_Athalia_ is another local b.u.t.terfly, but is sometimes found in abundance in the spots which it frequents. It is met with chiefly in the open s.p.a.ces of woods along the south coast and for some distance inland.

Devon, Cornwall, Suss.e.x, and Kent seem to be the most favoured counties; and London entomologists would do well to search for it in Epping Forest.

The b.u.t.terfly deposits its eggs during June and July, on several different food plants, the chief of which are the greater and narrow-leaved plantains (_Plantago major_ and _P. lanceolata_), foxglove (_Digitalis purpurea_), two species of cow-wheat (_Melampyrum pratense_ and _M. sylvatic.u.m_), wood sage (_Teucrium Scorodonia_), and the germander speedwell (_Veronica Chamaedrys_), and the young caterpillars, after feeding for only a week or two, commence their period of hybernation. They resume their feeding in April, and change to the pupal state about the end of May.

The colour of the caterpillar is velvety black, finely dotted with white, and the spines are yellow or orange, tipped with white.

The chrysalis is creamy white, banded and patched with orange and black, and is suspended by a.n.a.l hooks from a silken, carpet which the caterpillar had spun on the leaf of the food plant.

_The Comma_ (_Vanessa C-Alb.u.m_)

Leaving the Fritillaries, we now come to a genus (Vanessa) that includes seven most beautiful b.u.t.terflies, some of which are so common as to be known to almost everybody.

It will be observed that this genus belongs to the same family as the Fritillaries, and we may therefore expect to find that the two groups possess features in common. A slight examination of a few in their different stages will show that this is so. Thus, the perfect insects have only four walking legs, the caterpillars are all spiny, and the chrysalides are angular.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 75.--THE COMMA--UNDER SIDE.]

There is another feature concerning the chrysalides worthy of note. Like some of the pupae of the Fritillaries, they are adorned more or less with brilliant metallic spots, sometimes of a rich golden hue, and sometimes resembling burnished silver. Now the word 'chrysalis,' which, as we have already seen, is derived from a Greek word meaning 'gold,' was originally applied to the pupae of some of the Vanessas, on account of their metallic decorations, but it has since been extended to the pupae of all the Lepidoptera, and also to other orders of insects, even though the greater number of them display no tints of the precious metal.

The first member for our consideration is the Comma b.u.t.terfly, of which an ill.u.s.tration is given in Plate III, fig. 7. No one could mistake this beautiful b.u.t.terfly for any other British species, for its wings of rich orange brown, with black and dark-brown markings, are so irregularly scalloped on the hind margins that they present a somewhat ragged appearance. Its name is derived from the fact that a white mark something like the letter C, or, as some have it, like a comma, is distinctly painted on the dark brown of the under side.

This b.u.t.terfly generally emerges from the chrysalis late in the summer--August and September, but it is often seen earlier, and frequently as late as October. It is a great lover of sweets, and may be found settled on various flowers and fruits. Its chief food plants are the hop (_Humulus Lupulus_), red currant (_Ribes rubrum_), stinging nettle (_Urtica dioica_), and the Elm (_Ulmus campestris_).

It is very abundant in certain districts where hops are grown, but seems to avoid those counties that border the sea. It is widely distributed in the midland counties, and extends to the north of England and into Scotland, but is very capricious in its appearance in many parts.

The eggs are laid in May by females that have hybernated through the winter, and the caterpillars may be found feeding during July and August.

The caterpillar is coloured grey and brown, with a black head, and a broad white stripe down the back of the hindermost segments. The body is armed with a number of spines, some of which are white, and others pale brown.

The chrysalis is a very peculiar object, having two ear-like projections extending forwards from the sides of the head. It has a number of angular projections, and is of an umber-brown colour, finely netted with black lines, and having several spots of a brilliant metallic l.u.s.tre.

_The Large Tortoisesh.e.l.l_ (_Vanessa Polychloros_)

Our two tortoisesh.e.l.ls--large and small--are very similar in their colour and markings, and moreover are not always to be distinguished by their size, for specimens of the larger species are sometimes even inferior in this respect to the largest of the smaller species; so, to avoid all risks of mistaken ident.i.ty, we must look for more reliable marks of distinction between them.

The present species is figured on Plate III (fig. 8), where it will be seen that the ground colour of dark tawny brown is spotted and bordered with black. The border of the hind wings contains a row of crescent-shaped blue spots. The costal margin of the fore wings, between the black patches, is decidedly lighter than the general ground, and is yellow rather than brown. It will be noticed, too, that a black spot lies very near the a.n.a.l angle of these wings.

The under surface, though by no means brilliant, exhibits a rich blending of various shades of brown.

This b.u.t.terfly is not known to occur in either Scotland or Ireland, and is by no means common in England. Its chief localities are in the midland and eastern counties.

The perfect insect generally appears about the middle of July, and after spending a month or six weeks on the wing, seeks out a sheltered spot in which to spend the winter. In the spring--April or May--it again takes to flight, and during the latter month the females are busily engaged in the deposition of their eggs.

The caterpillar feeds on the two species of elm (_Ulmus campestris_ and _U. montana_), willow (_Salix alba_), sallow (_S. Caprea_), osier (_S.

viminalis_), aspen (_Populus tremula_), and certain fruit trees; and is full grown about midsummer. It is of a tawny grey colour, with a black stripe on each side, and is covered with very small wart-like projections, and the spines are branched.

The chrysalis is of a dull pinkish colour, and may be found on tree trunks, palings, and walls, about the end of June, suspended from a silken carpet by means of its a.n.a.l hooks.

_The Small Tortoisesh.e.l.l_ (_Vanessa Urticae_)