STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 429 



CURRANT. LEAVES. 



So long ago as the year 1781 Fabricius (Species Ins. ii, 93) 

 described one of our American butterflies under the name Prngne^ 

 this, in the fables of heathen mythology, being the name of a sis- 

 ter of Philomela who was said to have been changed into a swal- 

 low. The deeply notched wings of this butterfly, having some 

 resemblance to the forked tail of a swallow, perhaps suggested 

 this name to Fabricius. Figures and descriptions of this butter- 

 fly given by different authors since, have made it well known; but 

 to this day we have remained unacquainted with the vegetation 

 on which it is reared and the caterpillar from which it comes. In 

 June last, two worms were sent me from J. M. Stevenson of Cam- 

 bridge, one of the Vice Presidents of the State Agricultural 

 Society, found with several otliers of the same kind feeding upon 

 the leaves of his currant buslies. They proved to be the larvae 

 of the Progue butterfly, and I am thus able to give the complete 

 history of this species. I have also met with this butterfly in 

 thickets bordering on lowland meadows, where it had probably 

 been reared upon the wild black currant growing plentifully in 

 these situations. A caterpillar found upon elms is described by 

 Dr. Harris as being the larva either of this species or of the 

 Comma butterfly {C'album=^commaj Harris.) It now appears 

 beyi^nd a doubt that it pertains to this latter species and not to 

 the Progne butterfly under which it is placed. As the Progne is 

 so intimately related to the Comma or White-C butterfly, and as 

 this species feeds upon quite a variety of trees and plants, it is 

 prubable that further researches will show that the Progne is not 

 restricted to the currant but subsists upon other kinds of vegeta- 

 tion also. 



In very many of its marks no sensible difference exists between 

 this butterfly and the White-C, and the collector who has but one 

 of these species in his hands will be much perplexed to determine 

 wliich of these names to give to his specimens, with only such 

 brit'f and imperfect accounts as authors have commonly given 

 to guide him. An exact description of each particular part of 

 an insect is a valuable aid to the student in his researches, in every 

 instance, and is specially required where different species are 

 closely related. I liave therefore endeavored to draw up such a 

 description of this butterfly in its different stages as will serve to 



