The common butterflies

The common butterflies The common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterfliesThe common butterflies

OF TOEUNIVERSITY OF IUIN0I8.

AN OUTLINE FOR BUTTERFLY STUDY

ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF NATURE STUDY

CORNELL UNIVERSITY

The

LIBRARY

OF THEUNIVERSITY OF iUiROISComstock Publishing CompanyIthaca, N Y

The Common Butterflies

Spice-bush Swallow-tail ( Papilio troilus);male (Nat sizeonnegative). The

vine is the Bindweed, and the flowers are of the Butterfly Milkweed

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES

ffornature-study, and especially for

inter-estingthepupils inthemasteryofagroup Inalmost any locality outside of the large city,

there may be found in the course of a seasonthirtyor forty species ofbutterflies,andatleasttwenty of these are common. Because the

number is so small, the species are easilylearned and most of them may be identifiedwhile onthe wing

The teacher should bear thispoint in mind for it is a great

ad-vantageforachild tobeable to identifyacreaturewithout having

tokill ittomakesure.

In1906whentheeditorwasconducting theHomeNature-StudyCourse for Cornell University, a butterfly leaflet wasissued as apartofthis course Thisleafletwasverypopular at thetimeand

there are still many requests for it from teachers and pupils of

many states although the leaflet has been long out of print.

Therefore, it has seemed wise toreprintitwith suchadditionsas

willmake it applicableto a wider range thanNew YorkStateforwhich the original waswritten

A pleasure similar to that afforded by the sight of a beautifulflowerisexperiencedwhentheeyerestsuponabrighthuedbutter-

fly It may be balancing itself above its partner in beauty, theflower which gives it nectar, or it may be following the gracefulcurves of its path inthe air, orif frightenedit mayzigzag by soswiftly that the eye only catches a bit of moving color; and

although almost everyoneisattractedbythesebeautiful creatures,yet asidefromtwo or threeofthemost commonspeciesveryfew

people know their names or their habits Yet each one of the

butterflieshasamostinterestinglife-history,and someofthemare

ofgreateconomicimportance

,217

8 4654

218 NA T URE-ST UDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept.,1917

THE ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF BUTTERFLIES

Forthemostpartbutterflies arenotinjurious; although while

in the caterpillar stage they feed upon vegetation, most species

live uponweeds ofvarious kinds, and

those that feed

upon theleaves oftrees rarely occur

insuchnumbersas

todo damage The

cabbage butterfly

is a notable ception; it came

ex-tous from Europe andisnowawide-spread pest that

would work

de-The Black Swallowtail

Expansethree and one-half to four inches. Color

strUction tothe

en-brownish-black,thefront wings spottedwith

yel-low,the hind wingsbearing yellowandblue spots, tirecropofcabbageThere isa red eye-spot at the inner angle of the othercrucifer-hindwing.

ous garden plants

if leftalone Thecaterpillarsofthe blackswallowtailoccasionallyoccurinsufficientnumberstodamagecelery, andtheyoungofthegiant swallowtail do injury to the foliage of orange trees; occa-sionallythecaterpillarsofthemourningcloakdo some damagetoelms However, all butterfly caterpillars are easily gottenrid of

by spraying the foliage onwhich they are feeding with poisonedwater The benefits conferred by butterflies are only partially

known and little appreciated Very many flowers depend upon

butterflies forcarrying and bringingpollen The black

swallow-tail isespeciallybeneficentin this respect Alargenumberofthespeciesassistin cross pollinatingtheflowers ofthe plantsonwhichtheir young feed and thus they pay back their debt One little

radical, the wanderer, has departed from the traditions of thebutterfly family; its caterpillar feeds upon plant lice and thus is

veryhelpful.

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES 219

Thelife-historyconsists offourstages

First.— The eggs which

are laid upon the food

plant by the mother

but-terfly; theseeggs are often

exquisite in colorand

beau-tifullyribbed and pitted so

thatwhenseenthrough the

microscope they look like

gems

Second.— Thecaterpillars

which hatch fromtheseeggs

and which feed upon the

food plantuntilfullydeveloped Before reachingits full growth,

the lar sheds its

caterpil-skeleton- skinfour or five

times; often

thischangeofskin makesa

changeinthe

appearance and in thecolor of the

caterpillar.

Third.— The pupastateor

Caterpillar ofBlackSwallowtail in twostages ofgrowth , •

Thelargerone has thescentorgansprotruding. cnrysaiis.

When the

caterpillar is fullgrownit shedsitsold skinand appearsina verydifferent form, that of the

chrysalis or pupa The

pupae of the butterfliesare

neverprotectedbyacocoonas

arethepupaeofmoths This

isoneofthechiefdifferences

between moths andbutter- Chrysalis ofBlack Swallowtail

Eggsof BlackSwallowtail, enlarged.

220 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept.,1917

flies. The caterpillar,beforeitchangestoapupa,makesa button

ofsilkandsometimesalsoaloopofsilkbywhichthe pupaispended As the insect when in the pupa or chrysalis state is

sus-helplessandunabletomove,it is, therefore,aneasyprey to birds

andother enemies; thus thechrysalisisusuallyinconspicuousand

placedinsomepositionwhereit isnoteasily detectedbyeventhekeenesteyes

Fourth.—Aftera timethepupaskinisshedandfromthiscomes

thewingedinsectinall itsbeautyof colorandform

HOW TO STUDY THE BUTTERFLIES

The caterpillars may be found on their food plant and rearedindoors Thisrequiresagreat dealofcareinprovidingfreshfood

andinlookingafterthewantsofthelittle

prisoners Thisis the best way to study

theinsects,aswethus become acquaintedwiththecaterpillaranditshabitsandalsothe chrysalis; and whenfinallythewingedinsect emerges we may become familiarwithitscolors andmarkings beforeweset

itfree to carryonitsworkofperpetuatingthe species and of carrying pollen for the

flowers.

Or we maycatch a butterfly with a netwithoutinjuring itand let it loose in the

roomwherewecan studyit at closerange

and get thoroughly acquainted with its

size, form and colors. This isan excellentway

these insects but perhaps not necessarilythe best, is to make acollection of but-

terflies. Thisinvolvesthe catching of theinsects inanet,andkillingtheminacyanide

bottle,orbypinchingthe thorax,andthen

spreading thewingscarefully, lettingthem

dryextended, and then placing the

speci-mens in a box for safe keeping Every beginner experiences

lllliil

Spreading Board

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES 221whichdestroythem Theboxesof insectsinany museumhaveto

be looked over carefully every month and such as are infestedtreatedwiththe deadlyfumesofsomegas. Undoubtedlythebest

andcheapestwayforamateurstomounttheir insects inpermanentformisto use theRikermountswhichconsistofshallowcardboard

boxes with glass covers and filled with cotton The size of boxlargeenoughformostofourbutterfliescostsfifteencentseach,andtheycomein cases,a dozeninacase. Thebutterflyisspreadand

placed onthecotton, thecoverputon andsealedwithgumpaper

andthe specimenissafe for alltime As thereisaboxfor each,

anyspecimenmaybepassedaroundandstudiedbyitself.

Such acollectionof butterfliesisagreathelp toateacher as she

isthus able to bringa pagefromnature’sbookintotheschoolroomforthepupil’senjoymentandenlightenment,

means advise that the pupils themselves

make a collection of insects, or that they

be encouragedtodoso.

While we do not advise the children to

make collections of insects our reasons for

doing so arebasedquiteasmuch uponother

groundsasuponthat of developing cruelty

inthechild. Thetakingoflifeofthe lower

animals is a matter that had best not be

too much dwelt upon before children, for

we cannot be consistent in our teaching

and they soon discover it. For who shall

say that the catwhichcatchesandeatsthe

robinismoreculpablethanthe person who

eats lamb chop for breakfast,thus

sacrific-ing the life of an innocent and playful

creature to satisfy his appetite? And in the wider view oftheCreator and his creatures, the life of a butterfly is no more

sacredthanthat of the housefly or a mosquito It is far safer

tolet these questions alone in our teaching andcultivate in thechildaninterest inthelivesofthelower animals, thus bringinghim

intokindlyrelationswithhislittleneighborsofthefield,sothathewillnaturally respect their rights It is the boy who knows thebirdsandlovesthem,whowillnotshootthem; it isthechildwho knowsthebutterflyby name andsomethingofitsinterestinghabits

who

However,we by no

ABreedingCage

222 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept., 1917

We cannot eradicate crueltyby punishmentorrepression; but

we may crowditoutofthechild’scharacter,byputtinginitsplace

littlebylittlethehumane andtendersentimentswhichinevitablyfollowaknowledgeofthelifeandhabitsofeventhe lowestcreature

Inthe followingdescriptionsthemeasurementofthebutterflyis

madeacrossthe spreadwingsfromtiptotip; unfortunately,itwas

not practicable to have the pictures of all the butterflies natural

size Itmustbe borne inmind that individualbutterfliesof the

same speciesmay vary in size somewhat When the size of thecaterpillaris given it means the fully grown larva just before it

changes to apupa

THE SWALLOWTAILS

Thesearelargehandsomebutterfliesandget theirnamebecause

ofthe prolongation of thehindwings in amanner suggesting thetail-feathers of a swallow The caterpillars have a pair of scentorgansjust back of the head, which they can thrust out at will.

Theseare supposedto protect them from the attacksof birds by

renderingthemdisagreeable to smellandprobablytotaste.

The Tiger SwallowtailExpanse, threeandone-half to four inches Colors pale

straw-yellow markedwith black. Onthe hind wing

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES 223The Tiger Swallowtail.—This magnificent creature flies aboutleisurely and isfond of strong odorswhether they be fragrant orotherwise It is especially fond of to- #

bacco smoke and will often be seen

following in the wake of a smoker

The caterpillar has large eye-spots on

thethorax, andit has apretty habit of

makingasilken, spring mattress to rest

upon whenit isnoteatiilg; itmakesthis

by weaving the web of silk across the

leafpullingthe edgesoftheleafslightly

together Food plants, ash, birch and

poplar

TheBlackSwallowtail.—Thisgraceful

insect is often found about our houses

visiting the flower gardens It is one

of the most important pollen carriers

among the butterflies. The male is

Caterpiilar ?f the Tiger Swallow-tail resting on

its silken mattress.

smaller thanthefemale, and has

rows of yellowspots on both

wings The

cat-erpillar ismostly

black and spiny

when youngbutlaterit isadornedwith green and

black crosswise

stripes,the blackstripes enclosing

six yellow spots.

This greatestNorth Americanbutterflyhasanexpanseof caraway,

pars-fiveandone-half inches It isblackand marked with celeryand

yellowbandsdiagonally acrossthe wingsandnear the ;

’

224 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept., 1917

The Giant Swallowtail.—This is the largest butterfly in North

America It is a southern speciesand its caterpillars attack the

leavesof citrusfruits It isa

disagreeable lookingcreature,colored to imitate bird lime,

and when disturbed, erects

its head, throwsoutitsscent

horns and fills the wholeneighborhood withanalmost

unbearable stench It alsofeeds upon prickly ash and lombardypoplarandissome-

times found in the North

Caterpillar ofGiantSwallowtail.

Thebutterflyis magnificent andcreates the greatest excitement

when it appearsin theNorthern States as it sometimes does inlate summer.

The ZebraSwallowtail.— Thewings ofthezebra are barredwith

blackish and greenish white which make it a striking butterfly

Thelengthofitsgraceful

tails is dependent upon

the lateness of the

SouthernStateswhere it

goesthroughseveral

gen-erationseachyear The

caterpillar feeds upon

pawpaw, spicebush and

huckleberry

TheGreen-clouded

Swal-lowtail.— The wings are

black; the front wings

with arow of pale straw

colored spots near the .

The Zebra Swallowtail

, ,i i Thewingsarebarred withblackishandgreenish

outer margin, tne nma white. Nearthe base of each tail-like

pro-wingsare powderedwith longation of thewingsisa bloodred spot,andyellow-green or blue- beyondthisaretwopurplish bluecrescents.

greenscalesandeachbearsan orange spotatthemiddleofitsfrontedge andoneatthehindangle Sixpalecrescentsform an insideborder to the hind wing The tails to the wings are paddle-

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES 225

and sassafras It has eye spots on its thorax This speciesiscommoninthe SouthernStates

The Blue Swallowtail.—This is another black velvetybutterflywith a blue shimmering sheen playing over its wings in the sun-

shine. Thefringe onthe outermarginofitswings isalternatelyblack andwhite and each wingmay have arowofwhitish spotsjust insidethe border Theexpanseofwingsisfromthreeandone-halftofourandone-half inches ItscaterpillarsfeeduponDutch-man’s Pipe, Virginia snake-root, and black bindweed It is a

green-clouded species except that it has no orange spots on the hindwings

THE PIERIDS

THE WHITES

TheCabbageButterfly.—Thisisthewhitebutterflycommonnear

every garden in which grows cabbage or its near relatives. We had native species of cabbage

butterflies which did

compara-tivelylittledamage to gardens,

althoughtheywere found quite

commonlypriorto18 70;butthis

emigrantPieris rapcecametous

fromEuropegettingitsfoothold

in New York State in 1868

Now it has driven out all of

our native species; they have

literallytakento thewoods and

arefoundonly occasionally

flit-ting about the wild cruciferous

plants Thevelvety-green

cat-erpillarofthecabbagebutterfly

is very destructive and is well

known Itfeedsonother

cruci-ferous garden-plants but

pre-fers cabbage

The Cabbage ButterflyExpanse an inchand three-quarters.

Color white withblack spots. Male

above,female below.

THE ORANGE-TIPS The orange-tips are seldom seen; they are smallish white

butterfliesmarkedwithblackandhavethe lowersides ofthewings

226 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept., 1917

marbled and netted with green Many ofthe species, especiallythe males, have the front wings tipped with orange which gives

them thename Most ofthe species are found in the far West,

onlytwoareoccasionallyfoundintheEast

The Flacate Orange-Tip.—This butterfly has the apex of thefrontwingsprolongedintoahook shapedpoint Only themaleshavethefrontwingstippedwithorange Thecaterpillar feeds oncress,shepherd’s purseandothercrucifers.

The Roadside Butterfly—This is the most common sentative that we have of theyellows, anditmaybe seenin the

repre-summerin great numbers

flit-ting above theflowers of ourroadsides,orsettledforasocial

drink aboutsome mudpuddle

in the road Itscaterpillar is

small,greenincolor,andfeeds

on clover, vetch, lupine, etc.

It issowellconcealed bycolorthatit israrelyfound

The Sleepy Yellow.—Thisbutterfly has a wing expanse

of not quite two inches Itswings are bordered with abroad black band and the

dark spot in front of the middle of the front wing extends

up and down and is a mere line, looking like a closed eye The

caterpillars feed upon cassia, clover and senna The species is

TheDog's Head.— Thewide black border on thefront wing ofthisbutterfly outlinesonthe yellowa headthat resembles thatofa

duckquackingmore thanthatofanydog However, thepicture

on thewing ofthe femaleis slightly likethe profileofapoodle’shead Theblack spotformsalargeandstartlingeye Thecater-

pillarfeedsuponfalseindigoandclover Thisspeciesisabundant

in the south western United States and Pacific Coast Itswingexpanseisabouttwo andone-half inches

The Little Sulphur.—This is a pocket edition of the roadside

marked

The Roadside Butterfly

Expanse, oneandthree-fourths totwo

inches. Colorbright, sulphur-yellow.

Wingsbordered withblackish. Spot

on the fore wing black and on the

v hind wing orange-yellow.

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES 227

on the front wing Its expanse is less than one and one-halfinches It iscommonintheSouthernStatesandnorthward Its

caterpillar feedsuponcassiaandotherlegumes, preferringthe

The Cloudless Sulphur.—This splendid butterfly, the most

beautiful of all the yellows, has an expanse of two and one-halfinchesandlookslikeaCaliforniapoppyfloatingoff itsstem The

maleis pure yellow with no markings, but the female hasjust a

suggestion ofblack border on the outeredge ofher wings and a

black spotin front ofthemiddle ofeachfrontwing It isa

com-mon species intheSouthern States, andlate in theseasonpushesnorthward The caterpillarsfeedupon cassia andother legumes

THE NYMPHS

THE FRITILLARIES OR CHECKER-BOARD BUTTERFLIES

These are reddish-brown butterflies with manyblack spots on

theuppersidesofthewingsgivingthemacheckered appearance;

andwithmanysilverspotsonthelowersides ofthe wings When

wewerechildrenweusedtocalltheseround, silverspots“ butterflymoney,” anditwasoneofourpastimestogentlyseizeoneofthese

butterflies when we found it sucking nectar from some thistleblossomand count itsmoneybeforewelet it go.

TheGulfFritillary.—Thisisabrightcopperbutterflythat bears

someresemblance to themonarchsinceitsveins inthe outertions ofthewingare black Ithasanexpanseof twoandone-half

por-to three inches Itcan always bedistinguishedfromother

butter-fliesby theform ofthesilverspots on thelower side ofthe wingwhich arebar-shaped rather than coin-or crescent-shaped The

caterpillarsarespinyandfeedupontheleaves ofthe passionflower

ThespeciesisfoundintheSouth fromthe Atlantic tothe Pacific.The Regal Fritillary.—This is the most magnificent of all the

fritillaries, having an expanse of from three and one-half to four

inches Itsfrontwingsarecoppercolorwithdarkborders, butits

hindwings areblackwith yellowishorlight spots. Underneath,

thefrontwingsareorangeandthehindwingsarearich olivebrown

228 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept., 1917

ornamentedwith nearlythirty large silverywhitespots While ingeneralitresembles the great spangledfritillaryandthesilver-spot,

the black hind wingsdistinguishitfrom thesespecies.

The Great Spangled FritillaryExpanseaboutthree inches. Colororange (whichfades to a

dullbrownlate in the season)markedwithblack, thewings

shading to brown next to the body Undersides of the

wingsof theGreat Spangledat the left; of the SilverSpot

at the right.

The Great Spangled Fritillary and the Silver Spot Fritillary

—

These two areof thesame size and marked verysimilarly. The

onlywayto distinguish thetwo speciesis tostudythe lower side

ofthehind wings;inthe greatspangledspeciesthereisa broad,buff

bandinsidethesilverspotsthat border thewings; it isone-fourthasbroadasthewingitself. Thisbandisverymuchnarrowerinthe

silverspot Thecaterpillarsofthesespeciesarevelvety blackand

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES 229

The Variegated Fritillary.

—Thisis another southern

species and it has the real

fritillary markings on the

upper sides of the wings;

there arenosilver spotson

the lowersidesofthewings

which are marbled with

brown and white It has

awing expanse of two and

one-half inches Its

cater-pillar is thorny and feeds

uponpassionflower,mandrake,violetand someotherplants.TheSilverBorderedFritillaryandtheMeadow Fritillary.—These

aretwolittle fritillarieswhichresembleeachotherverymuch,but

may be easily separated by thefactthat the silver borderedhasthesilverspots on the lowerside

of the hind wings, while the

meadowhas notabutterfly dollar

onitswings anywhere Thecat pillarsof these speciesare small,mottled green and spiny They

er-feed uponviolets.

TheSilverCrescentandthePearl

Crescent.—These are two little

butterflies which may be

distin-guishedfromother orange-yellow,smallbutterflies because thereis

somuch ofbrown or black ugon

thewings thatit is hard to tell

whether that ortheorangeisthe

ground color. The lower sidesSilver Borderfd Fritillary ofthewings aremuchpalerthanabove;Meadow Fritillary,below, above andaremarked withvari-

inches. Colororange-yellow spot- oussnadesof yellowinmost

com-ted with black The underside

p cated patterns The

cater-ofwingsshows the meadow at

The Variegated FritillaryThewingsare copper redcrossednearthe centerwith apalerband and themark-

ings are blackish; no silver spots on

lower side of wings.

230 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept , 1917

marked with yellow or orange,

spiny, and feed on sunflowers,

astersandothercompositeplants

TheBaltimore.—Thisisanother

crescent spot, but is very

strik-ing in appearance It is found

near swampy places Its

cater-pillar isblackandorangebanded

and striped and spiny The

caterpillars of one brood live

together like a happy family,

The Baltimore

Expansetwoinches. Color black with

outermarginalrowof reddish-orange

spots and two parallelrowsofvery

paleyellowspots.

Pearl Crescent,Silver Crescent.Expanseoneandone-half inches.

Color orange-yellow with black

markings.

weaving leaves around selves for protection; a queerthing about them is thatduring latesummer thewholebrood suddenly stops eatingvoluntarily andwaits forwin-ter to pass, although sur-rounded byplentyof food Thefoodissnakehead

them-THE ANGLE WINGS

These butterflies are so calledbecause the edges of theirwingslook as if they were cut in

charp notches and scalloped

with a pair of scissors; they

are among our most

interest-ingandbeautiful butterflies.

The American Tortoise Shell.

—Thisstrikingbutterfly

some-times passes the winter as an

adult and sometimes as a

chrysalis Its caterpillar is

black with greenish sides and

The American Tortoise ShellExpanse two inches. Wings blackish crossed by a broad bandoforangebrown which shades to yellow on

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES 231spots; it is spiny The caterpillars of the same brood live

together feedingonthe lowersides oftheleaveswhich theyfastentogethermakingaprotectiveabode Thefood plantis nettle.The Compton

thefrontwingsis

straightand not

incurved Its caterpillar is greenish in color moreorless speckledwithlightercolor Ithasblack, bristly spinesandthecaterpillarsofthesamebroodfeedinaflock. Thefood plants are birchandwillow

The Mourning

Cloak.—This

but-terflywhichis well

knowninEuropeis

Itwinters asa

but-terfly and is the

earliest of all our

butterflies to pearin the spring

ap-Its caterpillar is

velvety black

cov-The Mourning Cloak ered with white

Expanse two and one-half to three and one-half A A A

inches. Color purplish-brown appearing black raised dots, and a

when flying. The wings have a broad, yellow row of red spotsborder sprinkled withbrown and just inside the , j r

borderarowof blue or lavender spots. along themiddleot

the back It has

The Compton TortoiseExpansetwo andone-half inches,mottled with darkred

and ochre yellow, like thecolors ofatortoise shell.

Awhite spot isonthefront ofeach wing nearthe tip.

The hind wingson thelowerside eachbear a smallL-shapedsilvery orwhitemark

232 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept., 1917

The Buckeye.—This is asouthernbutterflythatpushes

northwardlate in the season

It hastwo eye spots on eachfront and hind wing, a largeone and a small one The

smalloneon the frontwing is

color is brown with a tewcopper red markings; there isdiagonal yellow band across eachfrontwing Averysimilar speciesiscommon onthePacificCoast

The caterpillar is dark gray with lengthwise yellow stripes and

spottedwithyellowandorange It isornamented withbranchingspines Itfeeds upon gerardin, figworts,snapdragonandplantain

THE THISTLE BUTTERFLIES

Threeofthe anglewingsarecakedthethistle butterfliesbecausethey are particularly fond ofthe nectar of thistle blossoms, and

each onebears onthe lower side ofthewings abandof rich

rose-color, which wellmatchesthecolor ofthethistleflowers

The Red Admiral.

—

This is one of our most

striking and beautiful

butterflies. The wings

beneath are beautifully

mottled and the front

wings bear a diagonal

band of rich rose-red

Its caterpiller is dull

yellow, mottled with

black with a yellow

stripe along the side;

it has many spines It

feeds upon nettles and

hops

The Painted Beauty and the Cosmopolite.—These two speciesresembleeachotherverymuch; eachhas thehindhalf ofthefrontwingcoloredrose-pink on the lowerside; on thehind wingofthepaintedbeautyaretwoeyespots whileonthe cosmopolite thereare

The Red AdmiralExpanse a little less than two and one-half

inches. Color purplish-black with white

spots near the tips of the front wings.

Orange-red band across front wings and

borderingmiddlepart ofhindwings.

THE COMMON BUTTERFLIES

beauty is velvety black withcross linesof yellowand with a row

of white spots on each side back of the middle It has bristly

The Painted Beauty, above, The Cosmopolite, below,

showing under sides of wings at the right.

Expanseofwingsabouttwo andone-half inches.

spines; it feeds upon everlasting and allied plants The politecaterpillarismottled, greenish-yellowwithblackandyellow

cosmo-stripesalong theside Ithasbristlingyellowspines; itsfoodplantsare thistle, willow and everlasting The cosmopolite has thewidest distribution ofanyofour butterflyspecies It isfoundinevery part of the world except South America and the Arcticregions

THE POLYGONS

These are distinguished from the other butterflies not onlyby

thesharp notchesandangles oftheedgesofthe wings,but alsoby

having the hind margin of the front wing cut out in a gracefulcurve Eachspecies hason thelower sideof thehind wingnearthe center an initial or punctuation markwrought in silver, this

234 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [13:6—Sept., 1917

erratic; they dash aboutmakingquick anglessothattheeyecannot

followthem Whiletheuppersides ofthewingsare bright orange

redandquitestriking,thelowersides ofthewingsaremottledindull colorsso thattheyresembledeadleaves orgrass. All oneofthesebutterflieshastodotobecomeinvisiblewhenrestingonthe

ground, is to closeitswingsaboveitsback, and it is thenalmostimpossiblefortheeyeto detectit. TheVioletTip.

—

This is the largest

ofthepolygonsand

the most graceful

inform ofall

but-terflies. Itwinters

as an adult The

caterpillar is lowish-brown withirregularspotsand marks of lighter

yel-color Ithasmany

branching spines,one pair being on

the topofthe head

It feeds on elm,hop, nettle, linden

and hackberry

The HopMerchant.—This looks on theupper sidelikea dwarfviolettip,forthemarginsofthewings are tingedwith violet. Ithibernatesasabutterfly

andisoneof theearliest

thatwesee inthewoods

inthespring Its

cater-pillar is about an inch

long, dark brown or

greenish with blotches

and lines and adorned

with thorny spines one

pair of which is on the

. mi Expansetwoinches. Color bright orange-red

nettle and elm 1he with black spots. The borders of the

chrysalis is a beautiful wings darkbrownshadingoff to violet at the

, i -,i margin. The “initial” on the lower side

Object ornamented with

The Violet TipExpanse two and one-half to three inches. Color

richorange redspottedwithblack. Themargins

of the wings and tails violet color. The hind

wing bearing a large silver semicolon on the

lowerside,shownattheright.