*iSohic7i infests Butterjlies. 337 



speak doubtfully, however, not having at the present moment 

 an opportunity of referring to any works on natural history. 

 Were the insect I allude to known to Linnaeus*, I would almost 

 venture an opinion that he would have named it ^^carus lepi- 

 dopterorum : but whether or not he describes the species in 

 question, or any other under that name, my memory does not 

 serve me. I think I have formerly observed this v^'carus (?) 

 adhering to IIipparchi« Galathe«, but never in the same 

 abundance in which it is to be met with in this neighbourhood : 

 here the butterflies are, if I may be allowed the expression, 

 absolutely lousy with it. I have no microscope at hand, save an 

 ordinary pocket lens, to enable me to give an accurate and 

 minute description of the little parasite ; its general appear- 

 ance is bright red, about the colour of sealing-wax ; in shape 

 oblong, cylindrical, but somewhat flattened beneath ; and 

 about the size, or nearly so, of one of the small seeds of the 

 prince's feather (^maranthus hypochondriacus) ; legs (six in 

 number?) and antennae so minute as not to be visible to the 

 naked eye ; when crushed, it gives out a fine orange colour. 

 It adheres in clusters under the eyes of lepidopterous insects, 



(Hipparchia Galathe« Leach), so that many of them were scarcely able to 

 fly from the exhaustion caused by these little bloodsuckers ; and so per- 

 tinaciously did they retain their hold, that several of them now adhere to 

 the specirnens of the butterfly in our cabinet. What was most remarkable, 

 although the ringlet butterly (H. Hyperanthu^) was plentiful at the same 

 time, and is similar in food and habits, not one of the parasites was found 

 on some hundreds which we caught expressly to ascertain the fact. This 

 appears the more strange, as several dragon flies (Libellulina MacLeay) 

 were found as much infested with them as the marbled butterfly. We 

 also, more than once, found them on field crickets, ants, and beetles, 

 and once on a harvest spider (Phalangium Opilio)." This account cor- 

 responds in the main with the Dover ^'carus, save that I could observe 

 the parasite on no other than on lepidopterous insects ; nor did the butter- 

 flies infested with it appear to me to be in the least incommoded in their 

 flight by such encumbrance, not even the small blues (Polyommatus Fcaru* 

 and Adonic), though they had frequently five or six or more^^'cari adhering 

 to them : on the contrary, they sported about as briskly as usual, and to 

 appearance seemed quite unconcerned. I may remark, too, that, with 

 respect to Hipparchia; Galathea, that insect at the best of times evinces no 

 great power of wing ; but usually flies about heavily and slowly, frequently 

 settling on some stalk of grass, &c., and on such occasions keeping its wings 

 expanded. Unless Professor Rennie bore this circumstance in mind, it is 

 possible that he may have very naturally attributed the ordinary heavy 

 flight of Galathea to the encumbrance caused by the ^'cari. 



* On subsequently referring to Linnaeus, I think it not improbable that 

 our insect may be the same which he describes by the name of ^'carus 

 gymnopterorum {Fauna Suecica, edit, altera, p. 483.) ; and of which he 

 says " habitat in culicibus, apibus, aliisque, uti sequens acarus [A. coleop- 

 tratorum] in coleoptratis." It infests gnats, bees, and other insects, as the 

 following species, A. coleoptratorum, does coleopterous. 



Vol. V. — No. 26. z 



