FAMILY GOSSAMER- WINGED BUTTERFLIES. 123 



to be found about thickets on the borders of streams where 

 willows, the food-plant of the caterpillar, abound. The 

 caterpillars are very supple in their movements, much like 

 a snail, and eat the willoAV leaves from the edges inward. 

 The butterfly generally appears just before the middle of 

 July, occasionally earlier, and remains upon the wing 

 during August and joossibly later. The eggs then remain 

 unhatched until spring, w^hen the caterpillars attack the 

 tender foliage; they mature at the usual rate, and after 

 from eight to fourteen days in the chrysalis, the butter- 

 flies appear. 



Thecla Ontario is another species of tlie genus occurring in our 

 district, but is exceedingly rare, and is known chiefly from Ontario 

 and New England; and T. lorata, a great rarity known only from 

 Virginia, possibly not distinct from T. inorata. 



Other genera of Hair-Streaks found in our territory are : Erora, 

 with one species, ii/. lactn,2i great rarity though found in widely distant 

 places and to be looked for anywhere; Callicista, represented by 

 C. columella, a species of the Gulf States, once taken at Buffalo, N. Y. ; 

 Calycopis, with one species, G. cecrops, a southern species occurring 

 as far north as Kentucky and West Virginia; Eupsyche, one southern 

 species of which, E. m-album, has occasionally been taken in New 

 Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Ohio; and Atlides, with one species, A. 

 halesus, a somewhat common species of the extreme South, which has 

 been taken in Illinois. 



TRIBE BLUES. 



28. Genus Everes, 



EVERES COMYNTAS— THE TAILED BLUE. 



(Polyommatus comyntas, Argus comyntas, Lycaena comyntas.) 



Butterfly. — Hind wings with a short thread-like tail. Upper 

 surface of wings either dark violet (male) or dark brown (female), 

 the hind wings with a marginal series of dark spots, of which the 

 one next the tail is surmounted with orange. Under surface 

 satin-gray, with a very delicate extramesial series of dark brown 



