394 



at Natural 



well as on the adjacent continent, this pretty 

 Butterfly is tolerably abundant on commons, 

 roadsides, pastures, and heaths. The an- 



terior wings above are of a brilliant copper 

 colour, with the posterior margin and eight 

 discoidal spots black ; the hinder wings are 

 brownish black, with a copper band on the 



J(P 



hinder margin, which is externally den- 

 ticulated, and has a black line and some 

 dots on the disc : beneath, the colour is paler 

 and not glossy, and there are ten distinct 

 black spots on the disc ; the posterior wings 

 are drab-coloured, tinged with copper, and 



3ATHRPILLAB AND CHRYSALIS OF L. PHUB 



sprinkled with numerous blackish dots : the 

 cilia are rose-coloured at the tip, and black 

 at the base : the body is black with tawny 

 hairs above ; the antennae black, annulated 

 with white. Caterpillar green, with a yellow 

 dorsal stripe. It is observed to feed much 

 on the sorrel. Mr. Knapp, in his attractive 

 work, the ' Journal of a Naturalist,' speaking 

 of this pretty little butterfly, says, " We shall 

 see these diminutive creatures, whenever 

 they come near each other, dart into action, 

 and continue buffeting one another about 

 till one retires from the contest ; when the 

 victor returns in triumph to the station he 

 had left. Should the enemy again advance, 

 the combat is again renewed ; but should a 



cloud obscure the sun, or a breeze chill the 

 air, their ardour becomes abated, and con- 

 tention ceases. The papilio phlaias enjoys a 

 combat even with its kindred. Two of them 

 are seldom disturbed, when basking on a 

 knot of asters in September, without mutual 

 strife ensuing." 



A family of lepidopterous 

 insects, comprising several distinct groups 

 of small, but beautiful Butterflies, including 

 Polyommati, or the Blues ; Lyccenai, or the 

 Coppers ; and Theclce, or the Hair-streaks. 

 The majority of these have at least the anal 

 angle, if not the entire under surface of the 

 wing, ornamented with eye-like spots of 

 various colours. The flight of these insects 

 is feeble and slow. The caterpillars have a 

 great resemblance to wood-lice ; and the 

 chrysalis is short, obtuse at each end, and 

 girt round the middle as well as attached by 

 the tail. " They have hitherto been ob- 

 served to feed only upon the leaves of dif- 

 ferent trees and plants in the larva state ; 

 but a beautiful Indian species (Tttecla Iso- 

 crates) resides within the fruit of the pome- 

 granate, several being found within one fruit, 

 in which, after consuming the interior, they 

 assume the pupa state, having first eaten as 

 many holes as there are insects through the 

 rind of the fruit, and carefully attached its 

 footstalk to the branch, by a coating of silk, 

 in order to prevent its falling." Westwood. 

 LYMEXYLON : LYMEXYLONID^E. 

 A genus and family of Serricorn Beetles ; 

 having the antennas simple and sub-moni- 

 liform, and the thorax nearly cylindrical. 

 They are nearly allied to the Elateridce 

 and BuprestidcB. From the latter, however, 

 the insects of this small group are distin- 

 guished by having the head broad before, 

 narrowed behind, and not sunk into the 

 thorax ; they have not the breast-spine of 

 the Elaters, and their legs are close together, 

 and not separated from each other by a 

 broad breast-bone, as in the Buprestians ; 

 and the hip-joints are long, and not sunk 

 "nto the breast. In the principal insects of 

 this family the antennas are short, and from 

 the third joint, flattened, widened, and saw- 

 toothed on the inside ; and the jaw-feelers 

 of the males have a singular fringed piece 

 attached to them. The body is long, narrow, 

 nearly cylindrical, and not so firm and hard 

 as in the Elaters. The feet are five-jointed, 

 long, and slender. The larvae of Lymexylon 

 and Hyleccetus are very odd-looking, long, 

 ind slender grubs. The head is small : the 

 irst ring is very much hunched ; and on the 

 top of the last ring there is a fleshy ap- 

 pendage, resembling a leaf in Lymexylon, 

 ind like a straight horn in Hyleccetus. They 

 lave six short legs near the head. These 

 jrubs inhabit oak-trees, and make long cy- 

 indrical burrows in the solid wood. The 

 jenerical name Hyleccetus means a sleeper 

 .n the woods, or one who makes his bed in 

 ;he forest. One species of these insects (Ly- 

 mexylon navale) is very common in the oak 

 forests of the north of Europe, but rare in 

 ngland. Its larva is very long. At one 

 ,ime it multiplied to such an extent in the 

 dock-yards at Toulon, that the injuries it 



