CHAPTER XVI

_THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY AND THE SKIPPERS_

Family--ERYCINIDAE

_The Duke of Burgundy_ (_Nemeobius Lucina_)

The family _Erycinidae_ has only one British representative, commonly known as the Duke of Burgundy Fritillary, but although this butterfly certainly resembles the Fritillaries in general appearance (see figs. 9 and 10 of Plate VII), its habits and life history present many points of difference from these.

The upper side is chequered with black and tawny brown, the fringe is white and barred with dark brown, and a row of tawny spots with black centres border the hind margins. The under side has two rows of white spots, one near the base, and the other across the centre of each wing.

The male has only four legs adapted for walking, but the female has six.

The butterfly is out in May and June, and frequents the paths and open spaces of woods, chiefly in the south of England, but it has been taken in some of the northern counties.

The caterpillar (Plate VIII, fig. 6) is not spiny like those of the true Fritillaries, but more closely resembles those of the Blues, being somewhat of the form of a woodlouse. It is reddish brown, with tufts of hair, black spiracles, and a dark line down the back. It feeds on the primrose (_Primula acaulis_) and the cowslip (_P. veris_), and may be found during June, July and August.

When fully grown, the caterpillar secures itself to a leaf or stem by means of its anal claspers and a silken cord round its body, and changes to a short, thick, hairy and light-coloured chrysalis (Plate VIII, fig. 11), which is marked with several black spots. In this state it spends the winter, and emerges early in the following summer.

Family--HESPERIIDAE--THE SKIPPERS

This family contains eight small species, none of which are remarkable for brilliancy of color. They are, nevertheless, very interesting creatures, for they exhibit peculiarities of structure and habit that render them singular among the butterflies, and seem to show a sort of cousin relationship with the moths. They have thick bodies that remind us somewhat of the _Noctuae_. Their heads are broad, so that the antennae, which are slightly hooked at the tips, are rather wide apart at the bases. When at rest, they neither press their wings together over their back like the other butterflies, nor do they set them horizontally after the manner of the moths, but seem to lay claim to an intermediate position in the scale of Lepidopterous insects by holding them in a half elevated position. Their flight, too, is not graceful like that of most other butterflies, nor even so steady as that of the little flitting blues, but brisk and erratic, and resembling the fitful motions of moths disturbed from their slumberings at unwonted hours. Thus they have earned their popular title of skippers from their habit of skipping rather than flying from flower to flower. All the three pairs of legs of these butterflies are fully developed for walking.

The caterpillars have rather large heads, and their bodies taper from the middle toward both extremities. Like the larvae of many moths, they hide themselves in leaves which they have rolled and secured with silken threads; and when about to change to the chrysalis state, they also spin silken cocoons for their further protection.

_The Grizzled Skipper_ (_Syrichthus Malvae_)

The ground color of this species is a very dark brown, relieved by a number of square white spots arranged as shown in fig. 11 of Plate VII. The fringe is wide, and barred with the same two colours, arranged alternately. The pattern of the under side is similar, but the dark brown of the upper surface is replaced by a lighter olive tint.

The butterfly may be looked for in May in the open spaces of woods, particularly in damp places. It is common all over England, and is found also in the south of Scotland.

The caterpillar is either green or brownish, with a darker dorsal stripe of the same color, and two white lines on each side. It feeds on the raspberry (_Rubus idaeus_), the bramble (_R. fruticosus_), and the strawberry-leaved cinquefoil (_Potentilla Fragariastrum_), and is full fed about the end of June.

The chrysalis is greyish, spotted with black. It is rather elongated, and without angles, but has a short and sharp projection extending backwards from the 'tail.'

_The Dingy Skipper_ (_Nisoniades Tages_)

Colour--a dingy brown, indistinctly barred and spotted with a darker tint, and having a row of small white spots just inside the fringe of the hind margins. Under side--a paler brown, with rows of small white spots.

This butterfly is common in all parts of England, and is found in a few localities in Scotland and Ireland. It frequents dry banks, and is particularly partial to the chalky districts of the south-eastern counties. It is on the wing in May, and a second brood appears in lesser numbers in August.

The caterpillar is pale green, with two yellow stripes on each side, and a row of black spots above each stripe. It feeds on the bird's-foot trefoil (_Lotus corniculatus_), and may be found in June, and again in September.

The chrysalis (Plate VIII, fig. 12) is shaped something like that of the last species, and is coloured green on the front segments, and a rose red on the abdomen.

The perfect insect is represented in fig. 12 of Plate VII.

_The Small Skipper_ (_Hesperia Thaumas_)

In briefly describing the various British butterflies no mention has been made, except in a few cases, of the shape of the wings, this matter having been left to the reader's own observations of our illustrations. We will, however, call attention to the somewhat square-cut form of the wings of _Thaumas_ and the following species.

The above-named butterfly (Plate VII, fig. 13) is a lively-looking little insect, its wings being of a bright tawny orange colour, bordered with black, beyond which is a light fringe. The male, which is the sex figured, is distinguished from the female by an oblique black streak across the middle of the front wings. The under side is orange, with a decidedly greenish tinge.

The butterfly is out in July, and is very abundant and widely distributed. It lays its eggs on various grasses, particularly the meadow soft-grass (_Holcus lanatus_).

The caterpillar hybernates through the winter, and is full fed in the following June, when it changes to a green chrysalis after spinning a light silken cocoon among the blades of grass. The colour of the caterpillar is green, with six longitudinal white stripes--two on the back, and two on each side.

_The New Small Skipper_ (_Hesperia Lineola_)

A few years since (1888) a butterfly was taken in one of our south-eastern counties that closely resembled the well-known _Thaumas_ (or _Linea_), but which turned out to be a species not previously known in Britain. When, however, the distinguishing features of the new butterfly were made known, several entomologists discovered that they had already secured the new prize, but that, being ignorant of its characteristics, they had placed it in their series over the label _Thaumas_.

Since the above date, this new insect (Plate VII, fig. 18), which is named _Lineola_, has been taken in considerable numbers at Leigh, Harwich, Southend, and near Shoeburyness in Suffolk, as well as in the Fens of Huntingdonshire; and it is highly probable that it may turn up in various other localities where it has not yet been observed.

It appears on the wing about the first week of July, a little later than _Thaumas_, but the two kindred species are often found flying together.

The chief points by which we distinguish _Lineola_ from the last species are these: The general appearance of the wings is a bit dingier than in _Thaumas_; the inner portion of the hind wings is of a bright tawny colour in _Thaumas_ but not in _Lineola_; the tips of the antennae are yellow beneath in _Thaumas_, but black in _Lineola_; and the black streak across the fore wings of the latter species is short and generally broken.

The eggs of _Lineola_ are laid at the end of July or beginning of August on various grasses, chiefly the various species of _Triticum_, but do not hatch till the following April.

The larva is full fed about the end of June or beginning of July, and then changes to a long yellowish-green chrysalis, from which the perfect insect emerges in two or three weeks.

_The Lulworth Skipper_ (_Hesperia Actaeon_)

Although this species is somewhat similar to the two preceding, it may be readily distinguished by the heavy clouding of dull greenish brown that almost covers the wings. The male, which is shown in fig. 14 of Plate VII, has a black streak across the fore wings, and the female possesses a semicircular row of tawny spots near the tip of the same wings, and also a tawny streak near the centre.

This is a very local species, having been found only in a few localities. At Lulworth Cove and 'Burning Cliff' in Dorset it has been met with in profusion. In Devon it frequents the rough ground near the cliffs at Sidmouth and Torquay; and it has also been reported as appearing at Stratford-on-Avon, Shenstone near Lichfield, and the neighbourhoods of Swanage and Tyneham.

One can scarcely hope to see this insect at large without making a special trip to one of its favourite haunts, in which case a day should be chosen toward the end of July or early in August.

_The Large Skipper_ (_Hesperia Sylvanus_)

During May, June, and August this butterfly may be seen on grassy banks in nearly every part of England, as well as in certain localities of Scotland and Ireland.

The wings are all of a bright orange-brown colour, with a narrow black border, inside which is a broad shading of brown. The latter colour usually completely covers the hind wings with the exception of about half a dozen squarish spots; and the same colour, together with the dark brown wing rays, breaks up the light ground of the fore wings, often forming several squarish and triangular patches, most distinct near the tips. The male (Plate VII, fig. 15) may be readily distinguished from the female by the presence of a thick dark brown streak across the fore wings.

The under side of both sexes is pale tawny brown, with a greenish tinge; and has several rather indistinct yellowish spots.

The larva is of a dull green colour, with a dark line on the back. Its upper surface is dotted with black, and there are white spots on the under side of the tenth and eleventh segments. It feeds on several kinds of grasses, some of its favourites being the meadow soft grass (_Holcus lanatus_), the cock's-foot (_Dactylis glomerata_), and couch grass (_Agropyron repens_).

_The Silver-spotted Skipper_ (_Hesperia Comma_)

This species is very similar on the upper side to the last, except that the squarish spots of both fore and hind wings are much paler and much more distinct; and here, too, the male (Plate VII, fig. 16) is to be distinguished from the female by a black streak crossing the front wings obliquely. The under surface has a greenish tinge, more particularly on the hind wings; and this side is conspicuously marked with a number of _white_ square spots with sharp outlines, arranged as shown in fig. 96.

Although common in some localities, this butterfly is not widely distributed. It is confined to some of the southern and midland counties of England, and is particularly partial to the chalk districts of the south-east. On the chalk downs of Kent, Surrey, and Sussex it is moderately common. It is on the wing during July and August.

The caterpillar feeds on certain leguminous plants, among which are the bird's-foot (_Ornithopus perpusillus_) and the bird's-foot trefoil (_Lotus corniculatus_).

_The Chequered Skipper_ (_Carterocephalus Palaemon_)

This is another local insect, more so even than the last, but it sometimes appears in profusion in certain limited districts. Kettering, Oundle in Northamptonshire, and Monk's Wood in Huntingdonshire are places where it has been taken freely. It appears in June.

The wings are chequered with very dark brown and orange. The fore wings are bordered with small rounded yellow spots, and beside these there are about nine very conspicuous yellow spots on the fore wing and three on the hind wing. The arrangement of these markings may be seen in fig. 17 of Plate VII.

The caterpillar feeds on the greater plantain (_Plantago major_).