1X0 



BRITISH BUTTERFLIES. 



I have never seen, much less taken, at least 

 so far as I can now recollect, two specimens 

 of this butterfly on the same day. 



Sussex. Frenchlands Woods abundant J. 

 H. White ; Abbot's Wood C. 7. C. Levett; 

 in Sussex generally W. H. Draper. 



Worcestershire. One specimen was captured 

 near Worcester on the authority of Dr. Hearder; 

 it once occurred at Great Malvern, but I have 

 heard of none lately W. Edwards. 



Yorkshire. The caterpillar is common on 

 wych elms near Doncaster Geo. T. Porritt ; 

 near York and Sheffield Edwin Birchall ; 

 Edlington Wood, near Barnsley J. Harrison; 

 very numerous near Doncaster in 1860 Al- 

 fred Ecroyd; Sheffield, at Warncliffe Wood 

 Edwin Birchall. 



85: Dark Hairstreak (Theda Pruni). Upper side. 



Under side. 



35. DARK HAIRSTREAK. The fore wings are 

 nearly sti'aight on the costa, blunt at the tip, 

 and simple on the hind margin ; the hind 

 margin of the hind wings is slightly scalloped ; 

 it is produced at the anal angle, and has a 

 small but very decided tail : the upper side is 

 dark brown, with a series of red-brown spots 

 parallel with the hind margin of the hind 

 wings; these spots are generally four in 

 number, the two nearest the anal angle being 

 larger and brighter than the other two ; at 

 the anal angle is a vague but perceptible spot 

 composed of metallic blue scales ; the margin 

 itself is black, but its fringe pale. The under 

 side u brown, inclining to fulvous; on the 



fore wings is a broken transverse snow-white 

 line, about a third of the distance between 

 the tip and the base ; outside of this that is, 

 nearer the hind margin is an indistinct row 

 of red-brown spots ; those nearest the tip of 

 the wing are least distinct ; those nearest the 

 anal angle most so ; and the two largest are 

 accompanied by a small jet-black spot, with a 

 snow-white margin : the hind wings have an 

 oblique transverse snow-white line extending 

 from the costal margin towards the anal angle, 

 but not reaching it ; parallel with the hind 

 margin is a broad band of orange-brown, and 

 on each edge of this band is a series of pure 

 black spots, bordered on the outside with 

 snowy white ; the black spots in the inner 

 series are nearly round, and the blueish white 

 border of each is of a crescentic form ; the 

 black spots in the outer or hind-marginal 

 series are semicircular, and ornamented, espe- 

 cially at the anal angle, with metallic blue ; 

 the white border below these markings is 

 straight. 



Obs. In September, 1828, a member of 

 the Entomological Club purchased a number 

 of these butterflies of a Mr. Seaman, then 

 a well-known dealer in objects of natural 

 history, and resident at Ipswich. The pur- 

 chase was made under the impression that the 

 butterflies were the Black Hairstreak, then 

 a desirable insect to obtain. The purchaser 

 most kindly distributed among the members 

 of the club, then in its infancy, some of the 

 specimens, and I became a recipient. The 

 specimens are still in my possession. On 

 examining them, and comparing them with 

 such specimens of W-album as I then pos- 

 sessed, it immediately became manifest to me 

 that the newly-captured species was essen- 

 tially different, not only on the upper, 

 but also on the under side. Of course, 

 I made it my business to work out the 

 name of the supposed novelty, and soon found, 

 on comparing it with a continental figure, 

 that the new insect was Theda Pruni, and 

 the old one Theda W-album. Like all begin- 

 ners, I was proud of my discovery, and eager 

 to communicate the intelligence. The late 

 Mr. J. F. Stephens then received entomologists 



