92 BRITISH BUTTERFLIES. 



The female Cardamines has the wings white above, 

 with a greyish black tip, and a small oval, or crescent- 

 shaped black spot (much smaller than that of Daplidice) 

 near the centre of the front wings ; beneath, a white 

 ground, with green marblings, that are much more 

 sharply denned than those in Daplidice. Near the 

 centre of the front wing is a clear black spot, corre- 

 sponding in position with that on the upper surface, 

 and not shaded of ivith green, as in Daplidice. 



We speak of the green marblings of this species and, 

 to the naked eye, they do appear to be of quite a bright 

 green but under a microscope or powerful lens that 

 colour disappears, being resolved into a combination of 

 bright yellow and pure black scales, which, with the 

 dazzling snow-white ground scales that surround them, 

 form a microscopic tableau of extraordinary beauty. 

 This can, however, only be seen by daylight, for under 

 artificial light the yellow, on which the whole effect 

 depends, is entirely lost. 



The caterpillar is slightly hairy, and green, with a 

 white stripe on each side. It has been generally stated 

 that the Cardamine impatiens is the common food plant 

 of this species, apropos of which I will quote the fol- 

 lowing communication from Mr. Doubleday to the 

 editor of the Zoologist : 



" In reply to your query about the food of the larva 

 of Cardamines, I may say that I have found it upon 

 several plants. I believe that Cardamine pratensis 

 (common cuckoo-flower) is the one on which the eggs 



