72 THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



The mature caterpillar is velvety black with white dots, 

 and the divisions between the rings of the body are well 

 marked. The spines are black and rather glossy, and besides 

 this clothing, the body is also provided with short hair which 

 gives the velvety appearance. The head and a plate on 

 the next ring, also the legs, are shining black ; the prolegs are 

 blackish, tipped with yellowish. When quite young they are 

 greenish-grey, and although hairy are without spines. The 

 caterpillars usually feed in companies in June and July on the 

 common stinging nettle. They have also been found on hop. 

 Once or twice I have reared caterpillars of this butterfly, and 

 also those of the Small Tortoiseshell and the Red Admiral, on 

 hop, but the result has been disappointing, as the specimens 

 produced were always small in size. The individuals for these 

 experiments were obtained from nettle, and were generally 

 about half grown at the time they were put on the hop diet. 



The chrysalis is figured on Plate 39. Its colour may be 

 pale greenish, greyish, pale brown, or brownish-grey, but is 

 usually stippled with blackish, especially the antennas and the 

 outline of the wing-cases. Some of the points on the thorax 

 and the ring, or rings, next to it have a metallic lustre. Two 

 chrysalids among those resulting from my hop-fed caterpillars 

 were more or less suffused with the metallic sheen. It does not 

 seem to be very clearly known where the caterpillars retire to 

 for pupation. Those that I have found have been under a 

 tent-like arrangement of the lower nettle leaves. In confine- 

 ment, however, I have noted that in a roomy cage they all go 

 to one end of it and suspend themselves from the roof ; in a 

 large flower-pot they crowd together in much the same way. 



The butterfly is on the wing in August and September, and 

 frequents all and every kind of ground where flowering plants, 

 especially the taller kinds, are available ; clover fields are 

 attractive, and so also are orchards. It passes the winter in 

 some hollow tree trunk, wood stack, or possibly buildings of 



