WOOD WHITE BUTTERFLY. 
129 
short and flat, with the basal joint large and conical, 
the second short and quadrate, and the third or ter- 
minal one minute, and almost globular ; and by the 
shape of the wings, which are very narrow, and al- 
most elongate-oval, the surface wholly covered with 
scales. The antenna; have an abrupt compressed 
club, and the legs, which are alike in both sexes, 
terminate in bifid claws. 
It is much the smallest of our white Butterflies, 
and the narrow elongated wings give it, as has been 
well remarked, something of the appearance of a 
Dragon-fly. The colour is nearly milk-white, the 
base of all the wings somewhat dusky, and the tip 
of the anterior pair with a large brown spot. On 
the under side the latter are faintly tinged with green 
at the tip, and the costa is sprinkled with black 
points from the middle to the base. The under 
side of the hinder wings is tinged with yellowish- 
green, and sprinkled with ashy points, which form 
indistinct clouds and bands. 
The caterpillar is usually found on the Bird's-foot 
Trefoil ( Lotus corniculalus ), and Meadow Vetch- 
ling ( Lathyrus pratensisj. It is green, with a deep 
yellow line along each side of the body. 
There are two broods of the butterfly each season, 
one in May, the other in the end of July. Although 
an abundant species in most parts of Europe, it is 
rather scarce in Britain. In certain localities, how- 
ever, it has been found in plenty; — as in Dareuth 
l 
