108 THE BOOK OF BRITISH BUTTERFLIES. 



During May and June the eggs of this insect are laid 

 on the two common Nettles ( Urtica dioica and U. urens), 

 and hatch in about a fortnight, the earlier larvae being 

 full-fed in June. After a week or two as pupre the 

 imagines appear, and are found on the wing during late 

 summer and early autumn. They then hibernate, re- 

 appearing at the return of spring. As a matter of fact, 

 it would be difficult to name a period during the butterfly- 

 season when urticce cannot be found. 



The larva (Fig. 109), about ijin. in length, is, like all 

 its relatives, spine-bearing. The spines, which are short 

 and of a brownish colour, with black branches, are dis- 

 posed four on the third and fourth segments, seven on 

 segments five to twelve, and four on the thirteenth. 

 Black is the ground-colour of the dorsal surface, which 

 is thickly studded with small yellow dots, sometimes 

 forming a medio-dorsal yellow stripe, along the 'centre 

 of which runs a fine black line. Yellowish-brown 

 is the colour predominating on the rest of the body, 

 which carries two lateral yellow stripes, one above 

 and the other below the spiracles. These are black 

 set in a yellow ring. The head and legs are shining 

 black, and the whole of the larva is downy. Consider- 

 able variation is shown in the colouring of individual 

 specimens. 



The pupa (Fig. 108) is some tin. long, the head is 

 eared, the thorax rises to a sharp-pointed projection and 

 is keeled laterally, the abdomen is arched and bears two 

 subdorsal lines of sharp spines, while the mid-dorsal line 

 has slight indications of the mid-dorsal spines on the 

 larva. The ground-colour is yellowish-brown thickly 

 sprinkled with darker brown. Many specimens are very 

 much gilt, especially on those points which are 

 prominent. It has lately been noticed that the colour 



