Scotch Argus 



laden with the perfume of Bog-myrtle and Honeysuckle, 

 and where dragon-flies, bees, hover-flies, wasps, and ants, 

 raise a drowsy hum dear to the ear of the entomologist, 

 not to mention the hordes of bloodthirsty little midges, 

 tends to the formation of a mental impression, which we 

 always associate with this beautiful butterfly. It takes 

 strange notions, too, at times. I have found it often 

 " at home " as described above, and, again, I have come 

 upon it solitary and alone on the bare hillside, far from 

 the madding colony amongst which it was born. Five 

 such wanderers I once encountered in a single day in 

 August. All were on the move, either seeking a lost 

 home or lover, or possibly pastures new. 



The breeding ground is generally some sheltered 

 glade or open corner of a wood. The butterfly is 

 coloured a beautiful dark, velvety brown, with a broad, 

 irregular tawny red band near the outer margin of both 

 fore- and hind-wings. Within this band on the fore- 

 wings are three black spots, each having a tiny white 

 spot in its centre, and the hind-wings have in most 

 cases 9. similar adornment ; but as these spots are sub- 

 ject to great variation, always aim at securing a good 

 row for your cabinet in order to show as many varia- 

 tions as you can find. 



The under sides of the sexes differ from each other 

 and are distinctive. In the female the under side of 

 the fore-wing is marked very much the same as the 

 upper side, but the whole colour scheme is lighter, 

 while the hind-wings are a lighter brown, with a pale 

 lavender band, distinctly iridescent and with just a 



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