198 Transactions. — Zoology. 



Four days after I again visited that spot and Urtica shrub 

 for the last time that season (as I was to retui'u to Napier the 

 next day), and found 3 more larvse and 2 clu^ysahdes, and 

 brought them all away. Arriving at Napier on the 2nd INIay, 

 I placed the larvae, with a quantity of fresh leaves, in a large 

 wliite glass bottle; on the 4th, one of the larvse had suspended 

 itself to the (bored) cork of the bottle ; on the 6th it cast its 

 larva-skin and partly took up the chrysalis appearance, but 

 was very wet at first ; and on the 7th it assumed the true 

 chrysalis aspect. On the 9th another of the larvse hung itself 

 to the cork, head downwards, and commenced its transforma- 

 tion. On the 11th one of the chrysalides dropped off from the 

 cork ; I had noticed that this one was smaller and of a lighter 

 colour. On the 18th another of the larvse entered into its 

 chrysalis state, also attaching itself to the cork of the bottle. 



On the 19th one of the chrysalides I had brought in that 

 state from the forest burst, and the perfect insect emerged ; 

 but, owing to the shallowness of the glass in which these 

 forest chrysalides were confined, one wing had got stuck fast 

 to the side of the bottle in the process of emerging, and so 

 became contracted and rigid when dry, like a little plaited 

 epaulette ; while the other wing, being free, had attained to 

 its full size and shape ; but the poor creature was sadly lop- 

 sided. On the 21st another of the forest chrysalides split 

 open, and the imago emerged — a beautiful sight, "^^ once seen, 

 never to be forgotten. 



A tiling of beauty is a joy for ever. 



This was a fine and perfect specimen of this butterfly. 



I regretted much those larvse that entered into their pupa 

 state here in Napier not emerging therefrom as perfect insects. 

 I suspect this was owing either to their not having been fully 

 fed down to the time of their entering into that state, or that 

 they assumed it too early, and jierhaps in an unhealthy state. 

 As larvae they were very voracious ; it seemed as if they were 

 always eating, night and day ; so that my stock of Urtica 

 leaves that had cost me so dearly were soon disposed of. On 

 their being used up I tried the hungry creatures with several 

 other leaves of Maori plants, but none would they touch. 

 That shrub itself, though a large bushy and spreading one 

 (about 5ft. high and several feet round), with several others, 

 smaller ones, close by, almost always presented a sorry sight 

 from their leaves being so gnawed and stripped ; hence I had 

 always some difficulty in jirocuring good specimens of it for 

 drying and preserving. Those Urtica plants, however, re- 

 covered themselves throughout the winter, and were fully 



* See the full description of similar emergence of Danais berenice, as 

 ■witnessed by me (" Trans. N.Z. Inst.," vol. x., p. 279). 



