Butterflies. 55 



might at first sight be taken for a faded Atalanta. 

 The caterpillar lives generally sohtary on hollyhock, 

 nettle, or mallow, curling itself up in a lea£ It is of a 

 grey-brown colour, thickly sprinkled with hairs, a yellow 

 line fringed by reddish dots runs along each side. It is 

 found in most localities up to a considerable elevation, 

 from February till well on into the summer. The 

 butterfly is of a tawny red colour, shading off to brown 

 at the base of the fore-wings, with dark markings 

 and oblong black spots. The apex of the wings is 

 marked and edged in white, similar to the Atalanta. 

 The hind-wings are of the same tawny red colour, 

 having a line of five round black spots running along 

 each lower margin. The fore-wings are marked on the 

 under-side as above, the colour, however, being redder. 

 The hind-wings are pale buff, olive brown, and white, 

 having four or five blue-black eyes near the lower 

 margin, the two centre eyes being smaller than the 

 others, which are circled by black and white. Its flight 

 is very swift, and its erratic and rapid gyrations from 

 side to side make it a diflB.cult specimen to net. 



