CHAPTER XIV

_THE BROWNS AND HEATHS_

Family--SATYRIDAE

This family contains eleven British species, often spoken of collectively as the 'Browns,' since in most of them the prevailing tints are various shades of brown. They are decidedly dingy in comparison with the beautiful butterflies we have been previously observing; but to this statement we must allow one marked exception, for the family includes the beautiful Marbled White, which stands out prominently among its fellows for brilliancy and boldness of colour.

The caterpillars of the 'Satyrs' have no spines, but their bodies are covered with very minute hair-bearing warts that give them a soft velvety appearance. The hinder extremity tapers off considerably, and terminates in two points.

The chrysalides are not angular like those of the preceding species, and though generally suspended by the tail, are sometimes found quite free among leaves and grasses on the ground.

The perfect insects are rather feeble fliers, and generally take so little notice of intruders that they are easily caught in the hand. Their wings are devoid of angles, and they have only four perfectly developed legs.

_The Marbled White_ (_Melanargia Galatea_)

Our first member of this family is the exception to which we have already alluded as a relief to the general dinginess of the 'Browns.' Its colours above are cream and black, arranged as shown in Plate V, fig. 2. The under side (fig. 77) is marked with white, black, and greenish grey, with a row of eye-like spots parallel with the hind margin of the hind wings.

This butterfly is not known in Scotland or Ireland, nor is it to be found in several of the northern counties of England. Its chief haunts are the waste cliffy grounds of the southern and some of the midland counties of England, where it is usually restricted to certain small districts. In some places it is really a common insect, and among these may be mentioned Brighton, Horsham, Dover, Folkestone, Margate, Gravesend, New Forest, parts of Gloucestershire, Cambridgeshire, and Devonshire, also in the Isle of Wight and South Wales.

The perfect insect is out in July, during which month the eggs are deposited on various grasses, or indiscriminately on leaves and stems in grassy spots.

The caterpillar feeds on grasses; and, being still small at the end of the autumn, hybernates during the winter among the stems of grass. It feeds again in April, and is fully grown by the end of May. Its colour is a dull green or brownish, with a darker stripe down the back, and lighter stripes along the sides. Its spiracles are black.

The chrysalis is pale brown, marked with lines of a slightly darker shade. It may be found among grass stems, without any attachment, during the month of June.

_The Small Ringlet_ (_Erebia Epiphron_)

On account of the very limited range of this butterfly, only those who have the opportunity of visiting its haunts can have any practical acquaintance with its natural history. It is almost exclusively confined to the lake district in England, to a few mountainous localities in Scotland, and to one or two similar localities in Ireland. Its strong partiality for elevated situations has earned for it the popular name of Mountain Ringlet.

The colour of the upper surface (Plate V, fig. 3) is a dark brown, with a broad band of rusty brown, parallel with the hind margin of each wing, and broken by the wing rays. Each division of these bands has often a black central spot, but frequently these are entirely absent. The colouring of the under side is very similar but less defined, and the rusty spots of the hind wings are very small.

The butterfly is out in June and July. The caterpillars, which are green, with white stripes along the sides, feed on various grasses. They hybernate during the winter, and change to the chrysalis state in the following May or June.

_The Northern Brown_ (_Erebia AEthiops_)

The colour of this species (Plate V, fig. 4) is a rich dark brown, with rust-coloured and black spotted bands arranged something like those of the last. The markings, however, are very variable. There are usually four black spots on the band of the fore wings, but the first two of these are always united, and centred with white. The third is often very small or entirely wanting.

The under side of the fore wings is marked something like the upper, but the hind wings on this side are grey, with two broad bands of a darker colour.

As its popular name implies, this butterfly is a northerner. It is common in Scotland, where it flies in elevated spots. In England it is confined to the mountainous districts of the north.

The perfect insect is at large in July and August, during which time the eggs are deposited on various grasses or on low-growing herbage in grassy spots.

The caterpillar is of a brown colour, and has a narrow black stripe down the middle of the back, and two other stripes, lighter than the ground colour, one on each side. At about the end of June it turns to a chrysalis of a brownish colour.

The food plants of this species include a number of common grasses.

_The Speckled Wood or Wood Argus_ (_Pararge Egeria_)

Most of our butterflies delight in the hot sun, and are to be seen on the wing only when it is shining brightly. This fact is particularly noticeable on a bright day with occasional heavy clouds. While the sun's rays are pouring uninterruptedly on the landscape, numbers of these light-lovers are to be observed flitting about; but when the dense shadow of a passing cloud creeps over the ground they rapidly disappear from view, having settled down to rest on leaves and stems. Then, as soon as the shadow passes away, the air is again enlivened with their sports and flittings.

The Wood Argus is a marked exception to this rule. It delights in the cool shade of the narrow paths of woods, where it slowly flies up and down the lonely footpath, taking but little heed of strangers that intrude on its haunts, and seldom venturing into the full blaze of the sun unless pursued. Even on dull days it continues its solitary flight, and may even be seen on the wing while a soft rain is bathing the dripping foliage.

The upper surface of this pretty butterfly is shown on Plate V, fig. 5, and the under side in the accompanying woodcut. Both sides are prettily marked with various shades of brown and buff, and adorned with white-centred dark eye-spots which have earned for it the name of Argus.

It first appears on the wing in April, and may be seen from this month continuously to the end of August.

The food plants probably consist of many species of grasses, the cock's-foot (_Dactylis glomerata_) and couch grass (_Agropyron repens_) being among the number, and the eggs are laid on or in the neighbourhood of these during the summer months.

The caterpillar of this species is of a dull greenish or brownish colour, and it has two whitish stripes (sometimes three) down the middle of the back, and similar stripes along each side. It hybernates during the winter, and is full grown in March, when it changes to a dull green or brownish chrysalis, which is streaked with black, and has a few white dots on the back.

It has been stated that the butterfly is on the wing from April to August, and, according to some authorities, there are no less than three broods during this time, following each other in rapid succession. It is common throughout England and Ireland, and is known in parts of Scotland.

_The Wall Butterfly_ (_Pararge Megaera_)

Belonging to the same genus is another very familiar butterfly--the Wall--which receives its popular title from its peculiar habit of frequently resting on walls and stony banks. It is one of the first, if not _the_ first, to take to the wing in the morning, and is generally the last to seek its hiding place in the evening. I have seen it actively flying about during August, as early as 7.30 in the morning, and found it still flitting from one spot to another along the western side of a wall as late as 8 in the evening, as if in search of a convenient shelter for the fast approaching night.

This pretty 'Brown' must be familiar to the reader, and the coloured drawing on Plate V (fig. 6) will at once serve for purposes of identification without the necessity of a wordy description. It may be mentioned, however, that the male (the sex figured) is smaller than the female, and is further distinguished by a broad dark oblique band passing across each fore wing.

The Wall is a double-brooded butterfly, the first brood appearing in May, and the second in August. The caterpillars which produce the latter may be found on the cock's foot (_Dactylis glomerata_) and other grasses in June, while those of the former are hybernators; and the chrysalides of the two broods may be found in April and July respectively.

The colour of the caterpillar is green, with a slightly darker stripe down the middle of the back, a pale stripe along each side, and another similar stripe about midway between these two.

The chrysalis is green with the exception of the more prominent parts of its surface, which are almost white.

This species is very common in almost every locality in Britain.

_The Grayling_ (_Satyrus Semele_)

The Grayling is the largest of our 'Browns,' and, although a powerful flier, it seldom takes long flights. The female, which is shown in fig. 7, Plate V, is really a beautiful creature, the light markings of which stand out in bold contrast with the deep brown ground colour; but the male is comparatively dingy, there being much less contrast between the ground and the markings. He is also smaller than his mate.

The under side of both sexes is similar (fig. 79), the pattern of the fore wings being much like that of the other side, but considerably lighter, and the hind wings are beautifully marbled with various greys and browns.

This species is not nearly so common as the two preceding, but it is very widely distributed, and is exceedingly abundant in some parts. On some of the heathery cliffs and downs of the south and south-west coasts it is so plentiful that the butterflies are started into the air at almost every step, for it seldom flies except when disturbed. It is a common insect in Ireland, and also in parts of Scotland.

The caterpillar is a hybernator, and may be found feeding on grasses in the autumn and the spring. It changes to the chrysalis in June, and the perfect insect is on the wing from June to the beginning of September.

The colour of the caterpillar is pinkish drab above, and greenish drab beneath. A dark brown stripe, edged with a lighter colour, passes down the middle of the back, and a dark line on each side. It changes to a dark reddish-brown chrysalis on the surface of the ground, or, according to some observers, a little beneath the surface.

_The Meadow Brown_ (_Epinephele Janira_)

Although this very common butterfly is usually considered to be the dingiest of its family, yet it must be admitted that the colour of a freshly emerged specimen is really very rich.

The male is of a dark brown colour, with an indistinct patch of a lighter tawny brown near the outer margin of the fore wings, and a white-centred black eye-spot near the costal angle of the same wings. The female (Plate V, fig. 8) is of a lighter colour, the eye-spot on her fore wings is larger and far more conspicuous, and an irregular patch of light orange brown occupies a large area of each of the same wings. She is, moreover, larger than her mate, and in every way a more attractive insect.

The Meadow Brown abounds everywhere, from June to September, and may be seen on grass land and waste grounds where other butterflies are seldom found.

The caterpillar is green, and is rendered slightly rough by a number of minute warts. There is also a white stripe on each side. It feeds on various grasses in the autumn, hybernates during the winter, and is full grown in May.

The chrysalis is apple green, spotted with a lighter green, and has several black markings.

_The Large Heath_ (_Epinephele Tithonus_)

This butterfly is sometimes called the 'Small Meadow Brown,' and is certainly much like the last species, both in colouring and habits.

The fore wings of the male (Plate V, fig. 9) are light orange brown, bordered with dark brown, and having a broad patch of the same across the middle; and near the costal angle is a round black spot with two white dots. The hind wings are dark brown with a patch of light orange brown near the centre, and a small eye-spot near the anal angle. The female is exactly similar, except that she does not possess the broad bar on the fore wings.

The under side is shown in fig. 80, and is coloured with various shades of brown.

This is a very common butterfly, and may be seen during July in most English counties, also in the south of Scotland, and in a few localities in the south of Ireland. It frequents meadows, heaths, downs, and lanes, like _Janira_, but is not nearly so abundant as that species.

The young caterpillar is hatched in August, and is still very small when it seeks its winter shelter among the stems of grasses. It resumes feeding in the following May, and is full grown towards the end of June. Its colour is very variable--pale green, olive green, or dull brown, with five longitudinal stripes at about equal distances from each other. These consist of a dark one down the middle of the back, a pale line along each side, and another pale line midway between these.

The chrysalis may be found at the end of June, attached by the tail to blades of grass. It is of a very light colour, almost white, but adorned with numerous black lines and patches.

_The Ringlet_ (_Epinephele Hyperanthus_)

This is another rather plainly dressed insect, though somewhat prettily adorned on the under side. The upper surface is of a very deep sepia brown, almost black, with a few indistinct black eye-like spots near the margins. The under side (Plate V, fig. 10) is of a lighter umber brown, with corresponding eye-spots generally very conspicuous. These spots are black, with white centres, and generally surrounded by light rings. They are subject, however, to considerable variation. Those on the upper surface are sometimes quite absent in the male, but are nearly always readily perceptible in the female. On the under side, too, they are occasionally quite absent, while in other varieties they are minute white-centred dots, without any surrounding light ring. Our coloured drawing represents the most usual form.

The favourite haunts of the Ringlet are the borders of woods, and the sheltered sides of flowery hedgerows. It is not so widely distributed as some of the common 'Browns,' but is usually very abundant where it occurs, sometimes appearing in such numbers that several may be taken with a single stroke of the net. It does not seem to be a frequenter of Scotland, and is known in Ireland only in the south. Its head quarters are the southern and south-midland counties of England.

The eggs are laid in July on various grasses, on which the young caterpillars feed from about the middle of August till the cold weather sets in. They hybernate at the roots of the grasses till the beginning of the following May, and change to the chrysalis state about the middle of June, suspending themselves to grass blades by means of their anal hooks.

The colour of the caterpillar is dull green or brown, and is marked with five longitudinal stripes much like those of the Large Heath.

The chrysalis is pale brown, spotted and striped with a darker shade of the same colour.

_The Marsh Ringlet_ (_Caenonympha Typhon_)

The upper surface of this butterfly is shown in the first figure of Plate VI, and the under side in the accompanying woodcut; but it must be remembered that the species is a very variable one, so much so that it is almost impossible to give anything like a short and, at the same time, a satisfactory description. The female may usually be distinguished by a pale patch across the middle of the fore wings; and the eye spots of the same wings, always more or less indistinct when present, are sometimes entirely wanting. The markings of the under side are even more variable, the transverse bars and the eye spots being often particularly conspicuous, and at other times hardly discernible.

This is generally spoken of as a northerner, its chief localities being in the mountainous parts of Scotland and the elevated districts of the north of England, but in Ireland it extends to the southern ranges. Its haunts are elevated moors and marshy heaths, where its food plant--the beak-rush (_Rhyncospora alba_)--abounds, and it is on the wing from the end of June to August or September.

The caterpillar is green, with five longitudinal stripes--one dark one, bordered with yellow, down the middle of the back, and two pale yellow ones on each side. It is a hybernator, and is full grown about the end of May, when it suspends itself by the hindmost claspers to a silken carpet, and changes to a green chrysalis with pale brown wing cases.

_The Small Heath_ (_Caenonympha Pamphilus_)

The last member of the family _Satyridae_ is the well-known Small Heath, that may be seen almost all over the British Isles on heaths, meadows and moors, from May to September.

The upper surface of this butterfly (Plate VI, fig. 2) is a tawny yellow, with a dark brown border, and a spot of the same dark tint near the tip of each fore wing. The under side is much like that of the last species, but there are no eye spots on the hind wings.

The eggs of the first brood are laid during May and June on the various grasses on which the caterpillar feeds.

The caterpillars that emerge from these are fully grown in July or early August, and go through their changes during the latter month; but the later ones hybernate during the winter, and are not full fed till the following May.

The colour of the larva is pale apple green, with a wide darker stripe down the back, two others along the sides, and two more between the latter and the dorsal stripe. All these five stripes are bordered with a whitish colour.

The chrysalis is bright apple green, dotted with white, and the wing cases are striped with a purple-brown line edged with white.