50 INTRODUCTION. 



prevailing structure indicate no essential disagree- 

 ment, nor do they disturb the regularity of the or- 

 der, which is perhaps the most natural and best de- 

 fined of the whole. 



The species which it includes are popularly known 

 as Butterflies, Hawk-moths, and Moths ; terms 

 which nearly correspond to the genera Papilio, Sphinx, 

 and Phaleena, as originally constituted by Linnaeus, 

 and to the sectional divisions of more recent writei-s, 

 founded on the seasons of flight. Diurnal, Crepus- 

 cular, and Noctui'nal. Many of these are among 

 our most common insects ; and the curious economy 

 of some, and the remarkable beauty of others, have 

 long attracted the notice of observers ; while their 

 varied forms, and gorgeous colouring, have afforded 

 subjects of the highest interest to the lovers of the 

 pictorial art. Their amount is so considerable, that 

 the Lepidopterous order ranks among the most ex- 

 tensive with which we ai'e acquainted. There is 

 reason to believe, that it is surpassed only by the 

 Coleoptera or Beetles ; and some authors are even 

 inclined to assign it a precedence in this respect over 

 that numerous order. In this country alone, al- 

 though its variable and humid climate seems but 

 little adapted to the welfare of creatures formed 

 above all others for sunshine and calm, they fall very 

 little short of 2000. From this we may infer that 

 their numbers are very great in countries every way 

 adapted to their increase. 



Thfe diurnal Lepidoptera, or such as fly during 



