THE 'BROWN' BUTTERFLIES. ' 407 



Margate. Some years ago I took a great number of ]\Iarbled 

 Whites in a field near St. Margaret's Bay, and could have filled 

 a cabinet with them in a few hours. Sometimes thii! Butterfly 

 fre(|uents a certain pasture field, which is a sure locality for it. 

 Then if the field be ploughed up, and devoted to corn or 

 clover, the Butterfly vanishes entirely from the neighbour- 

 hood. 



Another insect belonging to this family is given on Woodcut 

 XLIT. Fig. 2. Its popular name is the Northern Brown 

 [Erebia blandina or Medea). The latter of these names is 

 the older in date, and although not so familiar as the former 

 name, has been restored by Mr. Newman on the score of 

 priority. 



The colour of this Butterfly is deep blackish-brown, with an 

 indistinct broad band of rust-red running nearly parallel with 

 the hind margin of the wings. These bands are adorned with 

 black eye-like spots, with centres of pure white. The two first 

 spots of the upper wings are always united so as to form a 

 figure of 8. The under surface of this Butterfly is very pretty, 

 the colours being disposed in a very bold manner. The first 

 pair of wings are dark-brown, with a very broad yellowish band 

 in which are eye-like spots corresponding with those of the 

 upper surface. The second pair of wings are liable to much 

 variety, but may be generally described as grey with two broad 

 waved dark bands. Several little black spots with white centres 

 occupy the space between the bands. 



This is not a common insect, inasmuch as it belongs more 

 especially to the northern portions of our island ; and, though it 

 is very plentiful in some parts of Scotland, is the rarest of the 

 rare in the southern counties. 



There are several other well-known Butterflies belonging to 

 this family, but our space will not permit of description. Such, for 

 example, are the Speckled Wood Butterfly {Satyrus Egeria\ 

 the Wall Butterfly (Satyrus Megcera), the G-ratling (Satyrus 

 Semele), the Meadow-Brown {Satyrus Janira), and the Ringlet 

 {Satyrus Hyperanthus), the last-mentioned insect being re- 

 markable for the fact that the upper surface of the wings is 

 perfectly plain brown, while the under surface is AVarm brown 

 adorned with sixteen spots, each spot having a white centre, 



