Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume III.djvu/505

 BUTTERFLY 499 leaf; the head of the chrysalis has two horn- like elevations and a prominence on the back resembling a nose, presenting rather a grotesque appearance ; in both sexes the anterior pair of feet are short and very hairy, and the two pos- terior pairs with double nails. Here belong the tortoise-shell butterfly (V. urticas, Linn.), and the following three other British species : the "Oamberwell beauty" (V. antiopa, Linn.), with angular wings of a deep purplish black, with a yellowish or whitish band on the poste- rior edge, and a row of blue spots above; the peacock butterfly ( V. 70, Linn.), reddish fulvous posed to be capable of inflicting dangerous wounds; the first brood is produced in June, and a second in August, which become per- Peacock Butterfly (Vanessa lo). above, with a large eye-like spot on each wing, on the upper reddish surrounded by a yellow- ish circle, the under blackish surrounded by a gray circle, with some bluish spots, and un- der the wings blackish; and the "painted lady " ( V. cardui, Gotd., more properly placed by Mr. Stephens in the genus cynthia), with wings red above, varied with black and white, underneath marbled with gray, yellow, and brown, with five eye-like bluish spots on their edges. The following American species are worthy of mention : The antiopa butterfly ( V. antiopa, Linn.), occurring, as has been seen, also in Europe ; this butterfly passes the winter in some sheltered place in a partially torpid state ; great numbers are sometimes seen crowded to- gether in barns, apparently lifeless, with the wings doubled together over the back, but quickly becoming active on exposure to heat; it comes out very early in spring, often before the snow is off the ground, and may be seen sport- ing, with torn and faded wings, early in March in sheltered spots. The caterpillars despoil the poplar, willow, and elm of their foliage, on which they are found in great numbers early in June ; they are black, with minute white dots, and a row of eight brick-red spots on the top of the back ; being nearly two inches long, and armed with spines, they were formerly sup- Antiopa Butterfly (Vanessa antiopa). feet insects before winter. The semicolon butterfly (V. interrogations, Fabr.) has the wings on the upper side tawny orange, with brown and black spots ; lower wings generally black above, beneath reddish, or marbled with light and dark brown, and a pale golden semi- colon on the middle, whence the name; the wings expand from 2J to 2f inches, while those of the preceding are from 3 to 3 inches ; it appears in May, and again in August, and is seen till the middle of October in sunny places. The caterpillars live on the American elm and linden trees, and on the hop vine, to which they are very destructive ; the spiny caterpillars are favorite receptacles for the eggs of the ptero- mnlus VanesscB, a tiny chalcidian parasitic in- sect of the order hymenoptera, which destroys great numbers of the chrysalids in whose bodies the little maggots come to maturity. Smaller species are the V. comma (Harris) and V. progne (Fabr.), which are much alike, expanding from 2 to 2 inches, above of a tawny orange, the fore wings bordered and spotted with black, the hind wings blackish posteriorly, with two black spots hi the middle, and a row of bright orange spots before the hind margin, the under side marbled with light and dark streaks, with a silvery comma in the former species, and a silvery L in the latter, on the middle of the hind wings. The caterpillars are very much alike, being pale yellow, with a reddish head, white spines tipped with black, and a row of four rusty spots on each side of the body ; they are found on the American elm in August. The genus nymphalis (Latr.), or apatura (Fabr.), contains some very large and beauti- ful species; the anterior feet are useless for locomotion, and the abdomen is received in a groove formed by the dilatation of the lower wings ; the caterpillars are less spiny than in