Garden White Butterflies, 



333 



Photo by] 



[H. M.ini, 



Large CIarden White Butterfly. 



To most persons the large and the small garden whites present themselves 

 as voungerand older individuals of the samespecies. They are, however, 

 quite distinct in spite of the superficial resemblance between the winged 

 Insects. The caterpillars are quit? unlike. This photograph is of a male. 



mischief. It is probably too late to 

 find an\' of them on what remains 

 of that leaf, but on a neighbouring 

 one they may be found. Up to a 

 certain point in its development 

 the caterpillar of the large white is 

 gregarious, and this is due to two 

 facts. The female butterfly lays 

 her ninepin-shaped yellow eggs in 

 a batch on the cabbage-leaf, all 

 standing upright. The batch may 

 be as few as six eggs or there may 

 be more than a hundred, and they 

 are laid at the rate of three or four 

 per minute. In from seven to ten 

 days they hatch, and all the young 

 caterpillars, having eaten their 

 empty egg-shells, crowd together and attack the cabbage-leaf in unison. The 

 fact that the eggs are laid in batches is one reason why the young caterpillars keep 

 together, as the cabbage-leaf is large enough to feed them all for a time. But the 

 chief reason is that the caterpillars are uneatable, and their colours indicating that, 

 it is important by associating to impress this fact speedily upon birds that might 

 injure without eating them. The same tactics of rendering themselves as con- 

 spicuous as possible in this way is adopted by sawfly-caterpillars. The ground- 

 colour of the caterpillar is green, but the more conspicuous features are five yellow 

 lines running lengthwise, one in the middle of the back and two on each side of it, 

 with dots and blotches of black 

 between them. In addition they 

 have a coat of short, whitish hairs, 

 and they give off an odour that is 

 very unpleasant from a single 

 caterpillar, but when scores of 

 them combine the smell is in- 

 tolerable. Until they ha\'e shed 

 their third skin they continue in 

 company ; then they separate and 

 each goes wandering off to find a 

 leaf for Inmself. 



When full-fed they migrate to 

 the nearest wall, fence, or post 

 upon which to settle for tin- chrysa- 

 lis stage of existence. Sometimes 

 they ha\'e to go far for the neces- 

 sary accommodation, and often 

 the\- may be seen on door and 



[K. IIiDicock. 



The Small Garden White Butterfly. 



The most familiar and abundant of our native butterflies, distinguished 

 from the foregoing species by its smaller size and by differences m the form 

 ana colours of the caterpillars. The butterfly is shown of the natural 

 size, in the resting position, with wings closed over the back. 



