The Butterfly

1. Why is this butterfly called the black swallow-tail? What is the ground color of the wings? How many rows of yellow spots on the front wings? Are they all the same shape? How are they arranged between each two veins? Describe the hind wings. What colors are on them that are not on the front wings? Describe where this color is placed. Describe the eye-spot on the hind wing. Where is it? How do the markings on the lower side of the wing differ from those above? How does the ground color differ from the upper side?

2. What is the color of the body of the butterfly? Has it any marks? Has it the same number of legs as the Monarch? Describe its antennæ. Watch the butterfly getting nectar from the petunia blossom and describe the tongue. Where is the tongue when not in use?

3. How does the butterfly pass the winter? How does the mother butterfly differ in size and in markings from her mate?

"The 'caraway worms' were the ones that revealed to us the mystery of the pupa and butterfly. We saw one climb up the side of a house, and watched it as with many slow, graceful movements of the head, it wove for itself the loop of silk which we called the 'swing' and which held it in place after it changed to a chrysalis. We wondered why such a brilliant caterpillar should change to such a dull-colored object, almost the color of the clapboard against which it hung. Then, one day, we found a damp, crumpled, black butterfly hanging to the empty chrysalis skin, its wings 'all mussed' as we termed it; and we gazed at it pityingly; but even as we gazed, the crumpled wings expanded and then there came to our childish minds a dim realization of the miracle wrought within that little, dingy, empty shell."

-HOW TO KNOW THE BUTTERFLIES, COMSTOCK.

THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY

Teacher's Story

T IS a great advantage to an insect to have the bird problem eliminated, and the monarch butterfly enjoys this advantage to the utmost. Its method of flight proclaims it, for it drifts about in a lazy, leisurely manner, its glowing red making it like a gleaming jewel in the air, a very different flight indeed from the zigzag dodging movements of other butterflies. The monarch has an interesting race history. It is a native of tropic America, and has probably learned through some race instinct, that by following its food plant north with the opening season, it gains immunity from special enemies other than birds, which attack it in some stage in its native haunts. Each mother butterfly follows the spring northward as it advances, as far as she finds the milkweed sprouted.

There she deposits her eggs, from which hatch individuals which carry on the migration as far to the north as possible. It usually arrives in New York State early in July. As cold weather approaches, the monarchs often gather in large flocks and move back to the South. How they find their way we cannot understand, since there are among them none of the individuals which pressed northward early in the

season.

The very brilliant copperred color of the upper sides of the wings of the monarch is made even more brilliant by the contrasting black markings which outline the veins and border the wings, and also cover the tips of the front wings with a triangular patch; this latter seems to be an especially planned background for showing off the pale orange and white dots set within it. There

The monarch butterfly.

are white dots set, two pairs in two rows, between each two veins in the black margin of the wings; and the fringe at the edge of the wings shows corresponding white markings. The hind wings and the front portions of the front wings have, on their lower sides, a ground color of pale yellow, which makes the insect less conspicuous when it alights and folds its wings above its back, upper surfaces together.

The black veins, on the lower surface of the hind wings, are outlined with white, and the white spots are much larger than on the upper surface. The body is black, ornamented with a few pairs of white spots above and with many large white dots below. The chief distinguishing characteristic of insects, is the presence of six legs; but in this butterfly, the front legs are so small that they scarcely look like legs.

It is easy to observe the long, coiled tongue of the butterfly. If the act is done gently, the tongue may be uncoiled by lifting it out with a pin.

To see a butterfly feeding upon nectar, is a very interesting process and may be observed in the garden almost any day. I have also observed it indoors, by bringing in petunias and nasturtiums for my imprisoned butterflies, but they are not so likely to eat when in confinement. The antennæ are about twothirds as long as the body and each ends in a long knob; this knob, in some form, is what distinguishes the antennæ of the butterflies from those of moths. The male monarch has a black spot upon one of the veins of the hind wing; this is a perfume pocket and is filled with what are called scent scales; these are scales of peculiar shape which cover the wing at this place and give forth an odor, which we with our coarse sense of smell

cannot perceive; but the lady monarch is attracted by this odor. The male monarch may be described to the children, as a dandy carrying a perfume pocket to attract his sweetheart.

It is very interesting to the pupils if they are able to see a bit of the butterfly's wing through a three-fourths objective; the covering of scales, arranged in such perfect rows, is very beautiful and also very wonderful. The children know that they get dust upon their fingers from butterflies' wings, and they should know that each grain of this dust is an exquisite scale with notched edges and a ribbed surface.

The monarch is, for some reason unknown to us, distasteful to birds, and its brilliant colors are an advertisement to all birds of discretion, that here is an insect which tastes most disagreeably and that, therefore, should be left severely

alone. There is another butterfly called the viceroy, which has taken advantage of this immunity from bird attack on the part of the monarch and has imitated its colors in a truly remarkable way, differing from it only in being smaller in size and having a black band across the middle of the hind wing. (See The Ways of the Six Footed, "A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing").

The milkweed caterpillar, which is the young of the monarch butterfly, is a striking object, and when fully grown is about two inches long. The milkweed is a succulent food and the caterpillar may mature in eleven days; it is a gay creature, with ground

color of green and cross stripes of yellow and black. On top of the second segment, back of the head, are two long, slender whiplash-like organs, and on the seventh segment of the abdomen is a similar pair. When the caterpillar is frightened, the whiplashes at the front of the body twitch excitedly; when it walks, they move back and forth. Those at the rear of the body are more quiet and not so expressive of caterpillar emotions. These filaments are undoubtedly of use in frightening away the little parasitic flies, that lay their eggs upon the backs of caterpillars; these eggs hatch into little grubs that feed upon the internal fatty portions of the caterpillar and bring about its death through weakness. I remember well when I was a child, the creepy feeling with which I beheld these black and yellow-ringed caterpillars waving and lashing their whips back and forth after I had disturbed them; if the ichneumon flies were as frightened as I, the caterpillars were surely safe.

The caterpillar will feed upon no plant except milkweed; it feeds both day and night, with intervals of rest, and when resting, hides beneath the leaf. Its striking colors undoubtedly defend it from birds, because it is as distasteful to them as is the butterfly. However, when frightened, these caterpillars fall to the ground where their stripes make them very inconspicuous among the grass and thus perhaps save them from the attack of animals less fastidious than birds. These caterpillars, like all others, grow by shedding the skeleton skin as often as it becomes too tight.

The monarch chrysalis is, I maintain, the most beautiful gem in Nature's jewel casket; it is an oblong jewel of jade, darker at the upper end and shading to the most exquisite whitish green below; outlining this lower paler portion are shining flecks of gold. If we look at these gold flecks with a lens, we cannot but believe that they are bits of polished gold-foil. There

The winter home of the viceroy caterpillar.

may be other gold dots also, and outlining the apex of the jewel, is a band of gold with a dotted lower edge of jet; and the knob at the top, to which the silk which suspends the chrysalis is fastened, is also jet. The chrysalis changes to a darker blue-green after two days, and black dots appear in the gold garniture. As this chrysalis is usually hung to the under side of a fence rail or overhanging rock, or to a leaf, it is usually surrounded by green vegetation, so that its green color protects it from prying eyes. Yet it is hardly from birds that it hides; perhaps its little gilt buttons are a hint to birds that this jewel is not palatable. As it nears the time for the butterfly to emerge, the chrysalis changes to a duller and darker hue. The butterfly emerges about twelve days after the change to a chrysalis.

References-Every Day Butterflies, Scudder; How to Know the Butterflies, Comstock; Moths and Butterflies, Dickerson; Ways of the Six Footed, Comstock; Moths and Butterflies, Ballard.