COMMA BUTTERFLY. 161 



The antennse are black above, and brown with white 

 rings beneath ; the club tipped with yellow. 



The colour of the caterpillar is brownish-red, 

 with a broad dorsal band of white extending from 

 before the middle to the binder extremity. The 

 head is nearly heart-shaped, and bears two large 

 hairy tubercles, one on each side, resembling ears. 

 It consumes the foliage of various trees, shrubs, and 

 herbaceous plants, such as the elm and willow, the 

 currant, hazel, honeysuckle, and the common nettle. 

 The fly is by no means of frequent occurrence in 

 Britain, at least in certain years, and does not ap- 

 pear to extend far north, although we have heard of 

 its having been seen in Fifeshire in Scotland. It 

 has been found abundantly near Hertford, in Suffolk, 

 in the neighbourhood of York, and occasionally in 

 most of the midland counties of England. The first 

 brood appears in the end of June or beginning of 

 July, and the second in September. Such as are 

 produced late in the year, are usually of a much 

 paler colour than those of the early summer. The 

 insect is very common in most parts of the Conti- 

 nent, and is known in the French provinces, and has 

 been described by Geoffroy, under the name of Ro' 

 bert le diable I 



