m THE COMMONER BUTTERFLIES. 



it belongs to a favored race, as, like all the members of its 

 tribe, it is protected from its natural enemies among the 

 birds by some nauseous peculiarities. The males can pro- 

 trude from the end of the abdomen on either side a bunch 

 or brush of hairs which may be the means of producing an 

 offensive smell; but besides this the whole body of both 

 sexes seems to have a rank odor, and its protection is the 

 cause of its unconscious mimicry by another of our butter- 

 flies, BasilarcMa arcliippus. It is the best example of 

 mimicry known in North America. 



The subfamily of Heliconians is represented in the southern part 

 of our district by the genus Agraulis, with one species, A. tsanillae, 

 a southern species which has occasionally been taken as far north as 

 Pennsylvania. 



Subfamily Nymphs. 



TRIBE CKESCENT-SPOTS. 



2. Genus Euphydryas. 

 EUPHYDRYAS PHAETON— THE BALTIMORE. 



(Melitaea phaeton.) 



Butterfly. — Wings black, marked with red and pale straw- 

 yellow, the markings larger on the under than on the upper sur- 

 face ; the red is confined to two or three spots (more below) near 

 the base of each wing and to a broad outer margin, divided by 

 the black veins ; the yellow mostly to four i)arallel series (two on 

 the upper surface of hind wings) of small round or squarish spots 

 (the outer row lunulate) between the veins in the outer half of 

 the wing, before the marginal band. Expanse of male 2 inches; 

 of female 24 inches. 



Caterpillar. — Head black with low conical summits. Body 

 spined, dark orange transversely ringed with black lines, the 

 tlioracic segments tapering, mostly black ; spines bluish black, 

 about as long as the segments with numerous long black bristles, 

 set on papillae ; there is a dorsal series, two others on each side 

 equally dividing the space between that and the spiracles, and one 



