Frail Children of the Air: Excursions Into the World of Butterflies |
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Frail Children of the Air: Excursions Into the World of Butterflies (1895) Samuel Hubbard Scudder No preview available - 2008 |
Common terms and phrases
abdominal segments abundant Ageronia Aglais alight allied American animal Anosia plexippus appear Argynnini Basilarchia belong birds body Brenthis brettus butter butterflies cardui caterpillars chrysalids closely Clouded Sulphur color common confined creatures Cyaniris distinct double brooded eggs emitted England entomologist Eugonia Europe European Eurymus fact fauna faunus feed female flies flowers food plant fore wings Fritz Müller genera genus habit Hesperidae hibernaculum hibernation hind wings insects instances Jasoniades known Laertias leaf leaves less live Lycaeninae male Melitaeini mimicked mimicry moths Mourning Cloak Mourning Cloak Euvanessa myrina nature nearly nest Nymphalidae observed occurs odor Oeneis Old World orange Pamphilini Papilioninae peculiar Pierinae Pieris Polygonia probably produced protection Radoboj region resemblance Satyrids Satyrinae scales season seen sexes side similar sometimes species spines spiracles spot spring Spring Azure stage structure summit Swallow-tail terflies thoracic segments tion tropical upper surface Vanessa Vanessa atalanta Vanessini White Mountain
Popular passages
Page 190 - One evening, when we were about ten miles from the Bay of San Bias, vast numbers of butterflies, in bands or flocks of countless myriads, extended as far as the eye could range. Even by the aid of a telescope it was not possible to see a space free from butterflies. The seamen cried out " it was snowing butterflies," and such in fact was the apjxarance.
Page 1 - To such perfection, indeed, has nature in them carried her mimetic art, that you would declare, upon beholding some insects, that they had robbed the trees of their leaves to form for themselves artificial wings, so exactly do they resemble them in their form, substance, and vascular structure; some representing green leaves, and others those that are dry and withered. 3 Nay, sometimes this mimicry is so exquisite, that you would mistake the whole insect for a portion of the branching spray of a...
Page 15 - Bates himself was inclined to look upon these, not as cases of parastatic mimicry, but as due " to the similar adaptation of all to the same local, probably inorganic conditions.
Page 6 - I believe . . . that the specific mimetic analogies exhibited in connexion with the Heliconidce are adaptations — phenomena of precisely the same nature as those in which insects and other beings are assimilated in superficial appearance to the vegetable or inorganic substance on which, or amongst which, they live.
Page 223 - Turnxs, where we sometimes have a black female, it is more difficult to decide what should be considered the normal color, owing to diversity of view upon the relationship of many of the Swallow-tails ; but, to Judge only from those agreed by all to be most nearly allied to it, there can be no question whatever that the striped character prevails.
Page 4 - I had an opportunity of proving in Brazil that some birds, if not all, reject the Heliconii butterflies, which are closely resembled by butterflies of other families and by moths. I observed a pair of birds that were bringing butterflies and dragonflies to their young, and although the Heliconii swarmed in the neighborhood, and are of weak flight, so as to be easily caught, the birds never brought one to their nest.
Page 88 - Several times when a pair, probably male and female, were chasing each other in an irregular course, they passed within a few yards of me, and I distinctly heard a clicking noise, similar to that produced by a toothed wheel passing under a spring catch. The noise was continued at short intervals, and could be distinguished at about twenty yards
Page 5 - A large species of spider (Nephila) also used to drop them out of its web when I put them into it. Another spider that frequented flowers seemed to be fond of them and I have already mentioned a wasp that caught them to store its nest with. There could be no doubt, however, from the monkey's actions, that they were distasteful to him.
Page 85 - Hampshire forests and forest fauna behind us, we come first upon insects (there arc others besides B. montinus) recalling those of the northern shores of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the coast of Labrador opposite Newfoundland ; and when we have attained the summit a butterfly greets us which represents the fauna of Atlantic Labrador and Greenland. Interesting as this is, how very meagre such a showing appears by the side of our knowledge of the...