70 BKITISH BUTTERFLIES. 



As may be surmised from the above notes, the larval movements 

 of the Lycaenids are usually extremely slow, and the habits exceedingly 

 lethargic. De Niceville says that the larvae of the majority of the Indian 

 species are extremely sluggish, and look, in many cases, more like a 

 Coccus or some vegetable excrescence than a caterpillar. The Australian 

 Hypochrysops delicia larva is noted by Anderson {Vict. Butts., p. 94) as 

 being very sluggish and retiring in its habits, hiding by day in crevices 

 or hollow twigs, and feeding by night, and this seems a frequent habit 

 with the Acacia-, and other tree-, feeding exotic species, as apart from 

 those feeding on low plants. The exceptions to this lethargic habit 

 are comparatively few, one of which appears to be the larva of 

 Virachola isocrates noted above, for Mrs. Wylly remarks that the larva 

 of this species differs considerably from those of Catochrysops cnejus, 

 Azanus ubaldus, and Tarucus theophrast us, those of the latter being inert 

 and slow, the former brisk in its movements, etc. The larva of 

 Oelastrina argiolus is exceedingly sluggish, often not leaving the ivy-umbel 

 on which it was born, and occasionally, apparently, keeping its head 

 fixed inside a bud, and its body absolutely motionless for one or two 

 days. The larva of Cupido minima will either get quite inside the 

 corolla, or, if it remain outside, will bury its head into a flower of 

 Anthyllis vulneraria, curl its body round the outside of the flower, 

 and remain immovable until it has cleared out the immature seeds, 

 when it removes to the next flower and serves it likewise. Similarly, 

 the larvae of Everes comyntas bury their heads into a clover-flower, and 

 curl the body round the surface of the clover-head, remaining thus 

 until prepared to attack another floret. The young larva of Plebehts 

 aegon is stated by Buckler to have powers of locomotion of the 

 feeblest description, whilst he notes the young larva of Aricia 

 astrarche as a very sluggish little creature, not inclined to leave the 

 underside of the leaf where it is hatched, even when the leaf has 

 become dry. McDunnough observes that, when the larvae of Polyom- 

 matus donzelii are approaching maturity, they remain very sluggish, only 

 shifting their position when requiring food. 



The sluggish habit is, however, undoubtedly primarily due to 

 the fact that the larvae gain a fair share of protection from 

 their cryptic coloration, and that any attempt at rapid move- 

 ment would immediately betray their presence. Chapman notes, 

 in our preceding volume, p. 64, how a larva of Lampides boeticus had 

 placed itself along the upperside of a spine of JJlex nanus, with 

 its head close into the axillary hollow, and so, in position, form, 

 size and colouring, it exactly resembled one of the small flower-buds, of 

 which a good many occurred on the branch. . . . The larger larvae of 

 this species were often easily seen, but often also were very invisible, 

 and this depended a good deal on whether they were amongst flowers 

 or buds, or were moving or resting. From the second instar onwards 

 they closely resembled in colour and texture the calyces of Adeno- 

 carpus intermedins, a favourite food -plant, and not infrequently disposed 

 themselves so as to look like a flower-bud. These buds, at first 

 greenish, are varied with red-brown, like the seed-vessels, and, like 

 them, are clothed with sticky glands. The larva varies much in 

 colour as it gets older, generally retaining an olive tint, due to a brown 

 overlying green, and, in colour and form, are inconspicuous amongst 

 calyces and young seed-vessels. x\nother variety of fullgrown larva 



