56 





MANCIPIUM CARDAMINES. THE WOOD LADY, OR ORANGE TIP, 



BUTTERFLY. 



Plate XXXII. fig./— i. 



Synonyms. Papilio (Dan. Cand.) Cardamines, Linn. Syst. Nat. ii. 761. Lewin's Papil. pi. 30. 



Donovan Brit. Ins. vol. v. pi. 169. Boesel. Ins. Class 2. t. 8. Duncan Brit. Butt. 



pi. 10. f. 1. male, 2. female. 

 The Orange-tip, or Lady of the Woods, Wilkes' Eng. Moths, fyc. pi. 99. 

 Pontia Cardamines, Ochsenheimer, Curtis, Samouelle. 

 Mancipium Cardamines, Hubner. 

 Anthocaris Cardamines, Boisduval Mist, Nat. Ins. Lep. i. p. 564. 



Upper Side, The head is green. The thorax and ahdomen are of lead colour. The superior 

 wings are white ; but the apex, for a quarter of an inch in the wing, is black. In the centre of 

 the wing is a black spot, just on the bar tendon. 



The under side of the superior wings is white, green at the apices, and with a black spot on 

 the bar tendon. The inferior wings are white, beautifully besprinkled and dappled with green. 

 The male hath the outer half of the superior wings of a beautiful orange colour. The female is 

 shewn at (g), and the male at (h). 



The caterpillar, represented at (/), is full fed about August ; and changes into chrysalis, as 

 seen at (i) ; lies during the winter in that state, and the fly appears the beginning of May. 



Expansion of the wings 1^ — 2 inches. 



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This pretty butterfly is one of the gayest ornaments of our pastures in spring ; 

 the time of its appearance being either the end of April or beginning of May, being 

 very regular in the period of its coming forth, varying but few days in the course of 

 many years. Stephens, however, gives the end of May as the ordinary time of its 

 appearance ; and adds a further note, that of six pupae of this species two came to 

 perfection at the end of May, one in the beginning, one at the end of June, and the 

 other towards the middle of July ; thus accounting for the continuance of the insect 

 in its final state. The caterpillar is green, with a white lateral stripe placed above the 

 legs ; it feeds, according to Stephens, upon Cardamine impatiens, Turritis glabra, 

 Brassica campestris, &c. preferring the seeds. The chrysalis, which is strongly- 

 curved, and has a curious produced spindle-shaped beak or process, is either green 

 or brown, with a fulvous spot on the wing-cases of the male. According to some 

 writers, the males of this species sometimes swarm in a field with scarcely a single 

 female being seen amongst them, (Ins. Misc. p. 215., Mag. Nat. Hist. No. 41) ; but 

 this circumstance appears only to be accidental, and not constant, if not doubtful, 

 (see Bree in do., No. 26). Boisduval mentions a variety in which the female has 

 an orange spot on the under side of the fore wings, nearly as bright as in the 

 male. 





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