BUTTERFLIES
BUTTERFLIES
Monograph Number Three in The Mentor Reading Course
Some to the sun their insect wings unfold,Waft on the breeze, or sink in clouds of gold;Transparent forms, too fine for mortal sight,Their fluid bodies half dissolved in light.—Pope.
Some to the sun their insect wings unfold,Waft on the breeze, or sink in clouds of gold;Transparent forms, too fine for mortal sight,Their fluid bodies half dissolved in light.—Pope.
Some to the sun their insect wings unfold,
Waft on the breeze, or sink in clouds of gold;
Transparent forms, too fine for mortal sight,
Their fluid bodies half dissolved in light.—Pope.
The largest family of butterflies is calledNymphalidæ,—a pretty name; for are not these “winged flowers” nymphs and sylphs of the woods and fields?
This family is also called “Brush-footed,” because the fore legs are without tarsi, or feet, in both sexes; the first pair of legs being dwarfed, the feet looking like a brush of hairs, and so utterly useless for walking that they are carriedfolded up against the breast. This enormous family is divided into many subfamilies. It embraces both large and small species. The family is ancient, and most fossil butterflies so far discovered belong to it.
A widely distributed genus of this family comprises the White Admirals (Basilarchia). These are among our most interesting butterflies. Their heads are large, their antennæ moderately long, ending in a short club, their fore wings subtriangular with the tip well rounded, and the hind wings rounded and scalloped. The plate exhibits several varieties. In the lower right isBasilarchia astyanax, or the Red-spotted Purple, which ranges from southern Canada through the United States as far as the Rocky Mountains and even to Mexico. This butterfly is somewhat variable, not always keeping closely to its type.
Flying downward in the upper right and center are two forms ofBasilarchia arthemis. The central butterfly is distinguished by broad white bands crossing both the fore wings and the hind wings. It is further ornamented on the hind wings by a row of red spots shading into blue and crescents following the indentations. In the form above, known asproserpina, the white bands are less marked. The main characteristic of the forms is the persistence of the red spots on the upper side of the hind wings. These butterflies abound in New England, New York, Quebec, Ontario, and parts of Pennsylvania. A close family resemblance is traced in theBasilarchia Weidenmeyeriin the upper left-hand corner. It differs by having a series of white spots on the borders of the wings.
Lorquin’s Admiral (Basilarchia Lorquini) is easily distinguished from all other species by the short yellowish bar near the middle of the fore wings and the bright red hue of the tips of these wings. A California species appears in the lower left-hand corner, handsomely banded and strikingly marked with orange-red spots near the ends of the fore wings.
PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATIONILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 3, No. 12, SERIAL No. 88COPYRIGHT, 1915, BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC.
The Butterfly BookCourtesy Doubleday, Page & Co.Copyrighted by W. J. Holland, 1898A GROUP OF SWALLOWTAILS1.Papilio zolicaon, Boisduval, ♂ (male)2.Papilio daunus, Boisduval, ♂ (male)3.Papilio pilumnus, Boisduval, ♂ (male)(The figures in this plate are reduced, being only two-thirds of the natural size)
The Butterfly Book
Courtesy Doubleday, Page & Co.
Copyrighted by W. J. Holland, 1898
A GROUP OF SWALLOWTAILS
(The figures in this plate are reduced, being only two-thirds of the natural size)