Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-05
QUEER WAYS OF BUTTERFLIES.
Some Of the Habits Of an insect Thst Began
Life A. = Worm.


Some Of the Habits Of an insect rhst Began
Lie a. Worm.
ssTHE HABITS OF BUrrERFLIEs AZ
L ford very interesting study" said
naturalist to writer for The srAR. ''fou will
find few Of them abroad in the fields before
or o'clock in the morning, and by in the
Summer evening. long before nightfaIi, nearly
every one will be tucked away for the night,
with shut wings and anteuns packed between
| them, re sting beneath some Leaf or clinging to
! grass blade.
Tus BaEAKFAsr.
The butterflies first thought on rousing
| themselves for the day is breakfast. OF they
20, probing every flower for its sweet Juice
Usually their day is mostly spent in this en-
ployment Some are less greedy or moro lazy
than others, devoting long hours to summing
themselves and gently half-opening and shut
ting their dainty wings.
Many kinds are decidedly pugnacious. Such
| one will perch on the tip of twig and dash
heIcely at the first butterfly that passes. sspe-
eiaiiy IL II be one OF its own species. Then the
two, circling about each other rapidly, will
mount skyward until presently they part and
the pursuer goes back to the very same twig
once more and there awaits another foe.
However, such butterflies do not limit their
ot"Chs W VtneIs Vi their KIM. Almost ANY
| argiewing. II You toss your hat In the air. will
ny ut 1t and circle around it with the utmost
ferocity. The little American copper butterfly
one OF the smallest species will 60 for very
bulky grasshoppers that come within its range
OF vision.
FOND OF wArEs.
Some butterflies are particularly fond of
water You will sometimes see them on the
Drinks OF roadsid pools hundreds Of them to-
pether thrOuviDp ohnut
erect and standing as close as they can be
packed. The tiger swaliow-tails' crowd
around lilac blossoms. drinking the juice until
they become intoxicated. so that one can catch
them easily with his hnnd The 'milkweed
butterfly mounts to lofty heights, as no other
butterfly does, and plays about in ceaseless
gyrations. Occasionally crowd of butterflies
VIII swarm upon a bush SO thickly as to change
ITS appearance by their color. Some kinds Of
butterflies seem to be nauseous to the taste, SO
SO that birds will not touch them. and butter
flies OF other species initiate their coloring
closely in order to obtain like immunity from
being gobbled.
IN GREAT swAHMs
butterflies are often seen I'm vast swarms. A
light house keeper on Lake Ontario was greatly
annoyed one season not long ago by great
numbers of these insects which gathered around
his light so rs to obscure it. Electric lights in
cities attract numerous butterflies from the
country aud entomoiogists have taken adyau-
tage of this fact to secure many very desirable
specimens Butterflies are peculiarly insects
OF warm countries; they live in the sun.
Nevertheless. there are few varieties which
make their homes in the frigid zone and on the
bieakest mountain peaks.
SHOWING BUrIERFLIEs
Darwin, in his 'Naturalists VOYAGE Around
the World says: One evening when we were
about tep miles from the Bay of San Bias.
In nnia
butterflies in hocks extending as far as the eve
could range. Even with a telescope it was not
possible to see any space that was free from
butterflies. The seamen cried out Its snow
ing butterflies" The day was fine and calm,
Us had been the day before, SO it cannot be
supposed that they had been blown off the
land They must have taken voluntary fight
IN THE TROPICS.
observers in India and elsewhere in the
tropics have often noticed great swarms of
whitish- yellow butterflies proceeding in line
along the seacoast. DR.. Shuttle an eminent
scientist, relates that in dead calm in the
Baltic sea he steamed for three hours, thirty
miles, through a continuous flock OF white
butterflies of the sort which, as caterpillars,
prey on cabbages. Subsequently the shore was
found strewn with the insects.
LONG FLIGHTS.
early on one October morning a few wears
ago people on the north side OF the main island
of Bermuda saw big cloud coming from the
northwest, which turned out. on approaching.
to be an immense concourse Of small yellow
butterflies, that fitted lazily about over the
grassy patches and cultivated fields, az if
fatigued after a long voyage over the Deep
Fisherneps boats out on tho water at the same
time were covered with the insects alightiny
The tendency of certain reddish-brown butter
flies to swarm along the water edge in prepare
ton for long flights is well known. Certain
species must have flown long distances over the
Pacific TO have tenanted the scattered island,
where they are found. One kind was seen by
naturalist in the south Pacific 500 miles from
any land"