508 BUTTERFLIES. 



Far surpassing it, however, is the Morpho rhetenor ; which, 

 conscious of its beauty, revels in the sunlight, but seldom 

 ventures nearer than twenty feet from the ground. So dazzling 

 a lustre have the upper wings of this butterfly, that when it 

 flaps them occasionally, and the blue surface flashes in the 

 sunlight, it may be seen a quarter of a mile off 



Another species of the same genus has a satiny white hue ; 

 but, infinite as they are in number, so most diversified are 

 they in their habits, mode of flight, colours, and markings. 

 Some are yellow, others bright red, green, purple, and blue. 

 Many are bordered or spangled with metallic lines and spots 

 of a silvery or golden lustre. Some have wings transparent 

 as glass. 



One of these (the Hetaira esmeralda) is especially beautiful, 

 having an opaque spot on its wings, of a violet and rose hue ; 

 and as this is the only part visible when the insect is flying 

 low over the dead leaves of the darker recesses of the forest — 

 where it is alone found — it looks like the wandering petal 

 of a flower. 



Of moths, too, there are great numbers, — among them, 

 the Erebus strix, the largest of its family, sometimes measur- 

 ing nearly a foot in expanse of wing. In the open sunny 

 spots the bright air is often alive with superb dragon-flics. 

 Upwards of one hundred species are found near Para. Some 

 live only in the gloom of the forest. Often, however, they 

 are the most beautiful, being more brightly coloured and 

 delicate in construction than the others. Many delight to 

 tiit over the igarapes and calm pools. 



Among these, the Chalcopteryx rutilans has four wings, 

 each transparent, — while the hind-wings, of a dark colour, 

 glitter with a violet and golden effulgence. They all wage 



