BRITISH ENTOMOLOGY V5, Curtis 1824

BRITISH ENTOMOLOGY; " BEING ILLUSTRATIONS AND DESCRIPTIONS THE GENERA OF INSECTS FOUND IN GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND: CONTAINING COLOURED FIGURES FROM NATURE OF THE MOST RARE AND BEAUTIFUL SPECIES, AND IN MANY INSTANCES OF THE PLANTS UPON WHICH THEY ARE FOUND BY JOHN CURTIS, F.L.S HONORARY MEMBER OF THE ASHMOLEAN SOCIETY OF OXFORD, OF THE IMPERIAL AND ROYAL ACADEMY OF FLORENCE, OF THE ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA, ETC VOL V LEPIDOPTERA, Part I LONDON: PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR, AND SOLD BY E GREAT RUSSELL STREET, BLOOMSBURY; SIMPKIN AND MARSHALL, STATIONERS' COURT; AND ELLIS AND CO., 92 J B BAILLIERE, 219 REGENT STREET 1823—1840 PRINTED BY RICIIAKD ANl) JOIIX K TAYLOK RED LION COURT, rLEET STREET TO JAMES CHARLES DALE, Esq M.A F.L.S &c WHOSE FRIENDSHIP AND KINDNESS TO THE AUTHOR HAVE BEEN EQUALLED ONLY BY HIS LIBERAL CONTRIBUTIONS AND ZEALOUS ENDEAVOURS TO RENDER THIS WORK MORE USEFUL TO SCIENCE, THE PRESENT VOLUME IS AS A SINCERE LoiKloii, Dec 1, 1832 DEDICATED, TOKEN OF REGARD AND ESTEEM TO CHARLES G B DAUBENY, M.D., F.R L 8c G.S., PROFESSOR OF CHEMISTRY AT OXFORD, THIS VOLUME IS AS A DEDICATED, GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE OF HIS KINDNESS AND FRIENDSHIP, AND AS A TESTIMONY OF THE SINCERE ESTEEM OF THE AUTHOR London, Dec I, 1833 TJS /3 /^36 - 578 PAPILIO PODALIRIUS The Scarce Order Swallow-tail Butterfly Fam Lepidoptera Papilionidae Type of the Genus, Papilio Podalirius Linn Papilio Linn., &;c Antennce inserted on the crown of the head, somewhat approximating, composed of about 30 joints, shortest at the base, terminated by an elongated, subcompressed and curved club (1) Maxillce spiral and tapering, as long as the antennee, horny and smooth at the apex (3) Labial palpi short, not meeting, curved upward and placed close to the face (7,4); very hairy, the apical joint completely concealed (4) triarticulate, basal joint long, very stout and curved, 2nd the same length, reverse-clavate, being curved and slender towards the apex, 3rd joint minute ovate (4«) Head small trigonate and obtuse (7 profile, ^^ front view) : eyes large prominent and ovate Thorax robust, elongate ovate ; collar rather elongated and narrow Abdomen rather short and ovate-conic Wings closed and elevated in repose ; superior elongate-trigonate, scarcely falcate, entire ; inferior scalloped, terminating in a long narrow tail, the abdominal margin excised : cilia none Legs perfect, alike in both sexes : tibise, anterior the shortest, posterior of equal length, with long spurs at the apex: claws simple, long, slender, curved and acute ; pulvilli small Lar\'ae naked, with pectoral, abdominal and anal feet ; furnished with a furcate organ on the neck which they can exsert when alarmed Pupae attached by the tail and suspended round the middle by a thread ; Podalirius Linn — Curt Guide, Gen 763 Whitish-yellow, superior wings wdth broad black bands, the basal ones continued down the inferior wings, the 3rd with a long black spot on each side at the costa, which is orange, the posterior margin with a very broad black fimbria divided by an orange stripe towards the apex inferior wings with a broad black margin, an anal spot of the same colour, bearing a blue lunule, orange above with a yellow margin, beneath ochreous posterior margin with or blue lunules, the edges indented with ochreous crescents, tips of the tails ochreous also : ; In the Cabinets of Mr Read and Mr Dale Papilio, which is the type of the most beautiful family amongst the insect tribes, has formed the theme of poets from the earliest ages, and the Butterfly has been regarded by the Every wisest and best men as an emblem of the human soul one who has observed the graceful, light and varied evolutions of this charming race, must have felt admiration and delight in contemplating the elegant form, combined with the beautiful and splendid colouring, of these lively children of Nature, " On tl»e gay bosom of some fragrant flower, They idly flutt'ring live their little Their life all hour and their task all play, age, and sunshine all their day." pleasure, All spring their Two as species of Papilio have been taken in England — Sam Comp.pl 6.f P Machaon Linn Wings yellow, nervures black, as well as the base and hinder margin which bears a row of yellow spots inferior with a black fimbria, blue in ; the centre, with lunate yellow spots and a red one at the anal angle The Caterpillar and especially of this species feeds on Rue, Fennel, Carrot, on the Selinum jjahistrc (pi, 580.), upon which of every size, in July, on the extensive marshes The of Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, and Whittlesea Mere Butterfly has been taken from the end of May to the beginning of August at the same places, and also in Dorsetshire It is very active on the wing, but is easily taken at sunset restI have found it ing on plants P Podalirius Linn It is with much — Curt Brit Ent satisfaction that I pi 578 $ commence this Volume with a figure of the Scarce Swallow-tail, because it is a great ornament to this Work, and will relieve those who have stated that it has been found in Britain from the imputations that have been cast upon them For my own part I never could see any reason to doubt Dr Berkenhout's authority, for he describes both species, and adds, P Podalirius is "rare in woods ;" Mr Haworth, in his Lep Brit., says Dr Abbot informed him "that he took in May last (1803), near Clapham Park Wood, in Bedfordshire, a specimen o{ Papilio Podalirius in the winged state ;" and the Rev F W Hope, in a letter to Mr Dale, dated 1822, says, "I have captured the long-desired and much-doubted P Podalirius, and since then I have seen another on the wing;" and yet in 1828 Mr Stephens states, as " no authentic instance of its capture is recorded, it seems absurd to consider it any longer as a British species :" he is no mistaken with regard to its northern range, for Dr Brominforms me that it is very abundant near Berlin, and in Russia up to Moscow, and M Hoffman assures me that it is found even at Hamburg All doubts are now cleared up by the specimen before us, which was taken by W H Rudston Read, Esq., when he was at school at Eton College and to him I am indebted for the loan of the specimen, which is darker than any other I have ever seen The following extract is from his letter: " I less field ; captured it myself in my hat near a large nursery garden at The month I canSlough, two miles from Windsor, in 1822 not tell you, but it could not be in August, as then we were always absent on vacation." The larva and pupa are copied from Hiibner; the former feeds on the Apple, Peach, Almond, Barbery, Plum and Sloe The Plant is Pyrus communis (Pear-tree) genus in my Guide, and shall so here The larvae of Ophiusa, like those of Catocala, have 16 feet; but I suppose they are half loopers, as Hiibner places them amongst his ISemigeometrae All the species, except the first, are very rare in England and several of them probably are not native insects they occasionally fly by day : O lusoria Lmn S N.83^ l^.—Curt Brit Ent p/ 475 J have taken it in a meadow at Eccles, in Suffolk, as early as the 10th of July but it is generally found about the middle I have observed it at of August, in moist woods, Yorkshire Coombe, Birch, and Darent Woods The caterpillar feeds upon the Astragalus glycyphyllos (pi 208.), and is copied from I ; Hiibner 3l9.—Goda,pl 56 in Mr Swainson's Cabinet ludicra Hiib 65 This and the next species are crassiuscula Very rare Haw Lep in the Brit 259 13 North of England grandirena Haio 264 27 A North American insect, a specimen of which was reported to have been caught at Bristol, and is in the British Museum — inops Ste scopulepes Haw 260 14 included this with the Acosmetiae, but I allied to Ophiusa Specimens are Museum, from it seems to be more - Mr Haworth's Cabinet and the Duchess of Portland's Collection in the British — Gen 882^ Catephia Och.^ Treit Ophiusa Curt " Wings, superior dark coloured, with sombre markings inferior at the base, light coloured, with a broad dark margin Antenna; setaceous, slightly pectinated Abdomen dark coloured, with tufts of hairs on the posterior segments*." — Goda, pi 5'i.f leucomelas Alchymista Hiib 62 303 Linn ? convergens Fab Formerly in the Collections of the Duchess of Pordand and — Mr Haworth The caterpillar feeds forests in France ; the on the Oak and Elm, and moth appears in is found in June O trifasciata Ste Reported to have been taken by the Rev W Kirby at Barham The Plant is Bupleurum rotundifolium (Common Thoroughwax), communicated by the Rev Dr Jermyn * The above characters are transcribed from Mr Children's valuable abstract of Ochsenheiraer's Genera, which we trust he will now resume, as the work is completed ^ z/y