BLUES. 



127 



frier.d. The original specimens, six in num- 

 ber, from which the descriptions were made, 

 are ia the British Museum ; five of them have 

 no discoidal white spot ; one has the white 

 spot decided and distinct ; four have an in- 

 distinct discoidal linear black spot ; all have 

 an indication of a series of orange spots parallel 

 with the hind margin ; in one specimen this 

 series is complete on all the wings ; the only 

 specimen showing the under side has a black 

 pupil in all the white spots. 



LIFE HISTORY. Unknown. 



TIME OF APPEARANCE. Ouebrood only; the 

 butterfly on the wing from the latter end of 

 June to the latter end of July. 



LOCALITY. Castle Eden Dene, in the county 

 of Durham. This species appears confined to 

 the sea-banks, and I have never seen it above 

 half a mile from the coast, and only stragglers 

 at that distance George Wailes. 



Scotch Brown Argus (Lyccena Artaxerxes). 



SCOTCH BROWN ARGUS. All the wings dark 

 sepia-brown on the upper side, with a white 

 discoidal spot on the upper wings, and an 

 indication of a series of rust-coloured spots 

 parallel with the hind margin of the hind 

 wings ; the fringe is spotted. The under side 

 is slatey-gray in the males, fulvous-gray in the 

 females : in both sexes there are seven white 

 spots on the fore wings, and eleven on the 

 hind wings : there is also a series of reddish 

 spois parallel with the hind margin of all the 

 wings, each of which is connected with a 

 crescentic black spot above and an amorphous 

 black spot below : between the middle of the 

 wing and the hind-marginal series of com- 

 pound spots is a sub-median white blotch, 

 often amalgamated with other white spots. 



Variety. With a white discoidal spot on 

 upper side of each hind wing. 



LIFE HISTORY. Mr. Young, of Edinburgh, 

 describes the EGGS of Artaxerxes as circular, 

 flattened, covered with small granulations, 

 except at the apex, and of a greenish-white 

 colour : they hatched in fourteen days, and 

 tho young caterpillars were very delicate, of a 

 semi-transparent white colour, with a black 

 Lead, and numerous long white hairs : they 



preferred the leaves of the scarlet geranium to 

 those of the sun cistus. Mr. Logan, Mr. 

 Buckler, and Professor Zeller, have given 

 lengthened descriptions of the caterpillar 

 in a more advanced state. I select Mr. 

 Buckler's, which is written from specimens 

 sent him by Mr. Doubleday, and is publisher 1 

 at page 176 of N"o. 55 of the " Entomolo 

 gists' Monthly Magazine." "The CATER 

 PILLAR," says Mr. Buckler, " is of the usua 

 Lyccuna shape, somewhat onisciform, short and 

 thick, being arched on the back and sloping 

 on the sides ; the spiracular region is swollen, 

 and projecting laterally much beyond the 

 claspers ; the segments appear deeply divided, 

 especially on the back, down which are two 

 rows of rather peaked cone-like eminences, 

 with a dorsal hollow between them. ; the 

 second segment is simply rounded above, and 

 rather longer than the others, and tapering a 

 little near the head, which is very small and 

 retractile ; the anal segment tapers very little, 

 is rounded behind, and hollowed above on the 

 sides ; the twelfth segment has a small and 

 prominent wart on each side. The half-grown 

 caterpillar is from three to four lines in length- 

 pale green in colour, and clothed with very 

 fine and short whitish bristles ; the medio- 

 dorsal stripe, beginning on the fourth and 

 ending on the twelfth segment, is of' a faint 

 brown colour, though wider and more strongly 

 marked just at the beginning of each segment, 

 and widest at its termination on the penulti- 

 mate. On the sides of the segments, from the 

 fifth to the tenth, are double oblique lines, 

 slanting backwards and downwards, of paler, 

 green in front and darker green behind than 

 that of the ground colour. At this stage of 

 growth the natural projecting ridge of swell- 

 ings is broadly pink, with scarcely an indication 

 of a central paler stripe ; the belly and ventral 

 claspers are pale yellowish green ; the legs 

 flesh colour. The head is black, the base of 

 the papillae flesh-colour, and there is a streak 

 of the same before the mouth. On approach- 

 ing full growth its length is about half an 

 inch ; the oblique lines gradually disappear, 

 and the green colour becomes rather darker ; 

 a pinkish white stripe runs along the natural 



