THE GREEN HAIRSTREAK. 147 



extreme north and south-west ; its range extends into Asia 

 Minor, and to Amurland and Japan. 



Thecla spini and T. z'licis, two species of Hairstreak butter- 

 flies belonging to Central and Southern Europe, have been 

 mentioned as occurring in Britain by some of the earlier 

 authors. There is not, however, the slightest reason to suppose 

 that either of them ever occurred naturally in this country. 



V^*haU*+4 The Green Hairstreak (Callophrys rubi). T'^/Zr** 



l/' & ^ ff€tr Both sexes of this butterfly (Plate 96) are brown with a faint **/$>/ 

 ctaJis golden tinge above, and green on the under side. The male ^^^ 



has a dark, or, when the plumules are dislodged, pale sexual ^J//* 



mark, which is oval in shape, and placed at the upper corner of 4f # I 

 the discal cell in the fore wings. Occasionally there are some a/*J* 

 orange scales at the anal angle of the hind wings, and more ** ^+*i 

 rarely, and in the female, at the extremities of veins two and ffUf 

 three also. On the under side of some specimens, chiefly from 

 Northern localities, there is a transverse series of white dots 

 across all the wings ; more often these are confined to the hind 

 wings, and sometimes they are almost or quite absent from all 

 the wings. Now and then the under side of the hind wings is 

 found to be brown in colour, and this change in colour has been 

 ascribed to the action of moisture. The life-history is figured 

 on Plate 97. 



The egg is greenish, reticulated with paler or with whitish- 

 green ; the reticulation is somewhat rough on the side, but 

 becomes finer towards and on the top, which has the centre 

 hollowed. Laid on the petals of the common furze ( Ulex enro- 

 ftcEus), and on leaves of rock-rose {Helianthenium chamcecistus). 

 The caterpillar feeds in June and July. It is pale green, with 

 a darker line along the back, and yellow oblique stripes on the 

 sides. Among the plants that it has been found upon, or is 

 known to eat, are dyer's green weed {Genista tinctorid), needle 



