CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE LIFE-HISTORY OF THECLA PRUNI. 70 



along the sides, and purplish hairs on the dorsal ridges. The seg- 

 mental incisions are deeply cut, causing the segmental sections of the 

 ridges to appear to be pointed backwards. 



Thorax. — The pro-thorax is narrow, but protuberant, and covers 

 the retracted head. It is thickly covered with long pale brown hairs. 

 The pro-thoracic spiracles are placed low down, one on each side, just in 

 front of the segmental incision that separates the pro-thorax from the 

 meso-thorax. The meao-tliorax is wider than the pro-thorax, extends back 

 considerably, and is somewhat protuberant, the two transverse sub- 

 segmental divisions apparent on the dorsum, and suggesting the meso- 

 thorax of the pupa. The meta-thorcu- is wider transversely, but very 

 narrow from front to back. It is round the centre of this segment 

 that the silken girth is placed at this stage, although it slips back to 

 the 1st abdominal when pupation takes place. 



Abdomen. — Dorsalh/. — The 1st abdominal segment is narrow from 

 front to back, and without any special armature. (It may be readily 

 distinguished, however, by its conspicuous spiracle). The 2nd, 3rd, 

 4th, 6th and 6th abdominal segments have a raised ridge on each 

 side of the medio-dorsal area. These are broken up by the segmental 

 incisions, and, owing to the stretched condition of the larva in this 

 stage, it is seen that the portions of the ridge do not extend to the 

 anterior sub-segment of the segments on which they are placed. This 

 suggests, also, that the backward direction which each portion of the 

 ridge takes has been brought about to make it appear as complete as 

 possible, when the larva is crawling, whilst the absence of the ridge 

 on each anterior sub-segment gives freedom of movement to the larva. 

 The upper edges of the ridges are of a purplish-red colour, edged with 

 pale yellowish externally, the purplish portions being well-supplied 

 with purplish coloured hairs, the yellowish portion with pale hairs. 

 Although the ridges practically end with the 6th abdominal segment, the 

 median furrow is theoretically extended to the anal segment, where the 

 ridge crops up again as a raised median, purplish-red, dorsal, terminal 

 point. The furrow is but very little darker than the ground-colour. 

 The anal segment bears some general resemblance to the pro-thoracic 

 segment in its flat, lip-shaped appearance. 



Lattrally. — The sides of the caterpillar are separated from the 

 venter by a slightly tumid longitudinal marginal ridge, well supplied 

 with long whitish hairs, whilst above this, and parallel with it, 

 is a pale, sharply defined, longitudinal sub-spiracular line, which 

 extends the whole length of the body. The segmental incisions are 

 well defined and pale, and the points, where the segmental incisions 

 cut the sub-spiracular lines, are very prominent. The dull orange 

 tubercles are very conspicuous, and placed very high on the sides, 

 about half-way between the lateral (sub-spiracular) line and the 

 dorsal ridge. 



The larva changed to a pupa during the night of May 27th. 



III. — Pupa of Thecla peuni. — The pupa of Tlwcla priini is, in its 

 dorsal aspect, more like a bird-dropping than any pupa I have 

 before observed. The general colour of the pupa is black, with a 

 whitish patch on each side of the anteriorly protuberant pro-thorax, 

 another on the lower central area of the swollen meso-thorax, and a 

 third, somewhat ) — (-shaped, crossing the constricted meta-thorax 

 transversely, and terminated by the wings. Two other narrow lateral 



