THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK 
CITY. 
By Wiiiram BEuTENMULLER, 
Curator, Department of Entomology. 
BuTTERFLIES and moths belong to the order of scaly-winged 
insects or “‘ Lepidoptera.’” The two may be distinguished readily 
by the fact that the butterflies have the tips of the antenne 
thickened into knobs, while the antennz of the moths are thread-, 
comb-, or feather-like. Butterflies fly in the sunshine, but moths 
generally are night fliers. 
The eggs of butterflies are far more variable in shape than are 
those of moths and insects of other orders, and their surface 
often is elaborately ornamented with raised lines and spots. 
They are laid singly or in masses. The caterpillars are long and 
cylindrical, and are composed of twelve joints or segments be- 
sides the head. Each of the first three segments bears ‘a pair of 
simple, short, articulated feet. These three segments represent 
the thorax, and the remaining nine the abdomen, of the perfect 
insect. The sixth to the ninth and the last joints of the cater- 
pillar as a rule are furnished with a pair each of thick, fleshy 
limbs, termed “pro-legs.’’ These legs have powerful muscles 
and are provided at their extremities with a great number of 
minute recurved hooks which enable the caterpillar to hold to its 
place of rest. When fully grown, they suspend themselves from 
some convenient object by means of a silken button, some using 
a silken thread around the body in addition to the button, and 
change into chrysalids. 
The present Guide Leaflet' is a popular account of the 
butterflies which are to be found within approximately fifty 
* Those who are interested in pursuing the study of these butterflies 
further, are referred to the author's ‘‘ Butterflies Found within Fifty Miles of 
New York,” Bulletin American Museum of Natural History, Vol. V, pp. 241- 
310, 1893. 
It 
