THE BUTTERFLIES 3047 



large number of orange-red or fulvous insects whose hind-wings on the under side 

 are spotted, spangled, or slashed with silver upon a dusted green ground. Not 

 uncommon throughout England, it occurs in abundance in the glades of the New 

 Forest, where rtie larva feeds on the dog violet or wild raspberry. The dark green 

 fritillary (A. aglaia], a near relative, frequents the southern grassy downs along 

 the margins of the cliffs, or sports in the fern-embroidered dells of the lake district 

 valleys. The high brown fritilla^ (A. adippe), a rather smaller form whose hind- 

 wings, as are those of the last-named species, are spotted with silver discs, while 

 those of the silver-washed are slashed obliquely toward the lower angle. The 

 Queen of Spain (A. lathonia], a much rarer insect, and the two elegant little pearl- 

 bordered fritillaries (A. euphrosyne and A. selene) are also British. The greasy 

 fritillary (Melitcea aurinia) brings us to another genus, the members of which 

 closely resemble those of the former, but are as a rule smaller. So many figures of 

 all the British species have been published, that detailed description is superfluous. 

 The greasy fritillary inhabits low-lying marshy meadows in various localities in 

 England, where the larvae feed on the plantain. The heath fritillary (M. athalia) 

 is a very similar though very local species; while the glanville (M. rinxia] is rare 

 in Britain, where it is confined to the Isle of Wight. Many handsome species of 

 this genus are found in all the more northern regions of the world, but undoubtedly 

 the most numerous occur in the Southwestern United States. The magnificent 

 fritillary (A. childreni), which measures nearly five inches from wing- tip to wing-tip, 

 is indigenous to the Himalayas. Closely allied to the fritillaries is the map butter- 

 fly (Araschnia levana} of Central Europe. It presents two very distinct forms, one 

 of which {A. levana) appears in the spring, the other (A. prorsa] later on in the 

 summer, while an intermediate form (A. porima) is also recognized. The form 

 known as the spring brood, figured on p. 3052, is fulvous red with scattered black 

 spots, presenting also three white spots near the tip of the wing. The summer 

 brood (Fig. 4) has black wings with a red marginal line, having besides a broad 

 broken white bar across the wings and some white spots near the margin. The 

 larvae feed on the nettle in June and September. The insect, though common on 

 the Continent, has not been taken in England. The curiously-shaped butterfly 

 known as the common {Polygonia c-album), was formerly much more common in 

 England than it is at present. The wings are rufous with black spots, and very 

 strongly emarginate along the edges, and angular. The white c-shaped spots on 

 either hind-wing beneath render it not easily mistaken for any other British species. 

 The handsome butterflies known as tortoiseshells ( Vanessa) are among the 

 most widely distributed of the family, though confined to the Northern Hemi- 

 sphere. Most inhabit the more temperate regions of Europe, Asia, and America, 

 although a few occur in India, Ceylon, the Malay Peninsula, and Mexico. The 

 caterpillars feed on plants and trees, and are usually dark and spinous. The chrys- 

 alis, angular and distinguished by its brilliant lustre, is suspended by the tail, and 

 forms a beautiful object. The large tortoiseshell ( V. polycfrloros} , so common in 

 woods in England, is usually found settling upon the trunks of trees, in summer 

 and autumn. The wings are .rich fulvous red, blotched and margined with black, 

 and having a narrow broken vein of blue just before the outer fringe. The larvae 



