THE PEACOCK BUTTERFLY. 639 



and adorned are of various shapes, sometimes broad, flat, and overlap- 

 ping each other like the tiles of a house-roof. 



The series of changes undergone by the Lepidoptera are perhaps bet- 

 ter known than those of any other order, on account of the large di- 

 mensions and conspicuous habits of the insects. 



Having given this general glance at the order, we will now proceed 

 ^ our examples. 



In the system which is adopted in this w^ork the Lepidoptera are di- 

 vided into two sections, the Butterflies and Moths, technically called Rho- 

 palocera and Heterocera, which may generally be distinguished from 

 each other by the form of the antennae, those of the Butterflies having 

 knobs at their tips, whilst those of the Moths are pointed. The fir^t 

 family is that of the Papilionidise, in which are included the largest and 

 most magnificent specimens of this order. 



The beautiful insect represented on page 638 is not very uncommon in 

 some parts of England, especially in the fenny parts of Cambridgeshire. 



It flies with exceeding rapidity, nearly in a straight line, and is very 

 difficult to capture. 



The color of the wings is black, variegated most beautifully with yel- 

 low markings, and near the extremity of each hinder wing is a circular 

 red spot surmounted by a crescent of blue, and the whole surrounded 

 by a black ring. 



We now come to another family, called the Pieridse, which may be 

 known at once by the manner in which the inner edges of the hinder 

 wings are folded, so as to form a kind of gutter, in which the abdomen 

 rests. In all these insects the colors are comparatively sober, the upper 

 surface being generally white and black, and the under surface spar- 

 ingly colored with red and yellow. To this family belong our common 

 White Butterflies, together with the well-known Brimstone Butterfly 

 (the harbinger of spring), all the Marbled Butterflies, the Orange-tip, 

 and the now scarce Veined-white. 



The large and important family of the Nymphalidre contains a vast 

 number of species, most of which are notable for their brilliant color- 

 ing, and many of which are well-known natives of England. 



To this family belongs the brightly-colored genus Vanessa, of which 

 the common Peacock Butterfly is a familiar British example. This 

 insect, which is one of the finest of our British butterflies, is very com- 

 mon in our own country, and may be seen very plentifully in fields, 

 roads, or woods, w^heu the beauty of its coloring never fails to attract 

 admiration. 



The caterpillar of the Peacock Butterfly feeds upon the stinging net- 

 tle, in common with others of the same genus, and therefore the insect 

 is worthy of our protection. Its common color is black, studded with 

 tiny white points. The chrysalis is one of those which hang suspended 



