LYCAINIDiE.— THECLA. 77 



Sp. 3. Pruni. Alis siipni nig}-o-J'iiscis, subtiii pallidiurihus strif^ii covimuni 

 undatli aiyi, post ids fuse id marginali ruhro-j'ulvd nigra marginatd. (Exp. 

 alar. 1 unc. 2—7 lin.) 



Pa. Pruni. Linnv. — Lewin, pi. 44. — Th. Pruni. Stejih. Catal. 



Wings above deep black or brown, immaculate : beneath paler, especially in 

 the females ; anterior with a transverse abbreviated white streak on the costa 

 towards the apex, slender and nearly straight in the male, broader and much 

 waved, especially towards the inner edge, in the female : posterior wings with 

 a similar streak, which becomes of a zigzag form, and attenuated towards 

 the inner margin: beyond this is an irregular deep rufous-orange marginal 

 band, edged internally with black, and, in very fine specimens, accompanied 

 by a narrow white streak— spotted externally with the former colour, and 

 also occasionally accompanied by a white streak towards the margin; the 

 tailed appendages (which are longest in the females) are black, tipped with 

 white: the body is black above, drab-colour beneath; the legs bluish, the 

 tarsi annulated with dusky: the antenna? black, with white rings and an 

 orange tip. 



The male is further distinguished by an ovate glabrous spot at the apex of the 

 basal areolet of the anterior wings. 



Caterpillar dusky-green, with whitish lateral lines ; the back dentated. It feeds 

 on the black-thorn. Chrysalis dusky-brown, with a white head. 



This species is usually esteemed a scarce insect in the neighbour- 

 hood of London, and previously to the last season I never saw it 

 alive ; but the boundless profusion with which the hedges, for miles, 

 in the vicinity of Ripley, were enlivened by the myriads that ho- 

 vered over every flower and bramble-blossom, last July, exceeded 

 any thing of the kind I have ever witnessed : some notion of their 

 numbers may be formed, when I mention that I captured, without 

 moving from the spot, nearly 200 specimens in less than half an 

 hour, as they successively approached the bramble-bush where I 

 had taken up my position. How to account for their prodigious 

 numbers I am perfectly unable, as the same fields and hedges had 

 been carefully explored by me at the same and diiferent periods of 

 the year for several preceding seasons, without the occurrence of a 

 single specimen in either of its stages ; and it is worthy of remark, 

 that the hedges to the north and north-west of the village were 

 perfectly free, although the brambles, &c., were in plenty. A few 

 specimens were also taken near Windsor, and in Cambridgeshire, 

 and, I believe, near Ipswich, during the past season. The entomo- 

 logists of this last town, Mr. Kirl)y informs mc, do not esteem it a 

 scarce insect : its usual time of ajipearaiice is the end of June, and 

 it continues till the middle of July. 



