1568 THE BUTTERFLIES OF NEW ENGLAND. 



nearly all our Satyrinae and Pamphilidi live — a good fourth of o\ir butter- 

 fly fauna, even omitting the many Pam])liilidi which doubtless feed upon 

 grasses but which are not yet known in their early life. 



The families whicii ai'e chosen as food Ity nienil)crs of more than two 

 families of butterflies are always important. Five of them nourish mem- 

 bers of three families, while three are chosen by some members of all four 

 families. Of the first, the least important, but more significant in Europe 

 than in America, are the Urticaceae (2 Nvmplialidae, 1 each Lycaenidae and 

 Papilionidae), followed by the Cruciferae, a favorite of the Pierinae and 

 besides eaten by one of the Lycaenidae and one of tlie Hcsperidae ; and 

 Ericaceae (2 Nymphalidae, 3 Lycaenidae and 1 Papilionidae). More 

 important are the Compositae (8) which are especially eaten by Melitaeidi, 

 but also by other Nymphalidae, as well as by Lycaenidae (2 species) and 

 Papilionidae ( 1 ) . But Rosaceae take the fii-st place with those that sup- 

 port only members of three families, it being the known food of thirteen 

 species, mostly Nymphalidae ((3) and Lycaenidae (5) Ijut also Papilio- 

 nidae. 



The families of plants fed u[n>n by all four families of butterflies are 

 three in number, and with the Rosaceae just mentioned and the Gramineae, 

 the greatest supporter of caterpillar life, nuist be looked on as the favorite 

 food of butterflies in their early stages. These are the Cupuliferae and 

 especially the oaks which nourish eight species, mostly Lycaenidae and 

 Hesperidae ; the Salicaceae, the food of eleven species, five of them Nym- 

 plialidae, the others equally divided among the remaining families ; and the 

 Legiuninosae, which vie for pre-eminence with the Gramineae, for twenty- 

 three of our species are found upon it; of these, nine are Hesperidae (and 

 perhaps exclusively Hespei'idi), seven are Lycaenidae, five Papilionidae 

 (exclusively Pierinae and indeed Rhodoceridi) and two Nymphalidae. 



jNIore than one-third of our butterfly fauna is made up of tlie lowest, 

 least known and most inconspicuous family, the Hesperidae, our members 

 of one tribe of which feed almost exclusively on Leguminosae (a few on 

 Salicaceae, Cupuliferae, etc. ) , of the other on Gramineae, and of course very 

 decidedly affect the general result when all butterflies are considered. It 

 is entirely owing to them that these two families take the first place, though 

 thov are by no means insignificant in their relation to the other fiimilies of 

 butterflies. For leaving the Hesperidae oiit of consideration, the Rosaceae 

 easily assume the first place and hold it alone, while the Leguminosae and 

 Gramineae still retain such importance as to hold the second place, and 

 indeed the highest position there, with the Salicaceae, Compositae and Vio- 

 laceae, followed hard by the Cupuliferae, Ericaceae, Grossulaceae and Cru- 

 ciferae. These, then, are the preferred food of the caterpillars of our 

 eastern American buttei-flies and wliere there is no clew from relationship 

 or otherwise as to what the food plant of an unknown caterpillar may be, 

 it is wisest to experiment with these. 



