A multitude of refinements in classification have been invented by recent authors and a lot of generic names have been proposed which in this book we shall in part ignore, as they are based upon such slight points that nobody but a man armed with a big microscope can make them out. They puzzle common people, and this book is for laymen and not for the supertechnical.
Genus EUMÆUS Hübner
(The Blue-spots).
PL. LXXIX
Medium-sized or small. Dark in color, with the borders on the upper and lower sides and the hind wings below beautifully adorned with spots of metallic blue or green. There are three species in the genus, two of which occur in our territory, E. atala, which we figure, and E. minyas, which may be distinguished from the former by its larger size.
(1) Eumæus atala (Poey), [Plate LXXIX], Fig. 1, ♂, under side (The Florida Blue-spot).
The figure accurately represents the lower side of this charming insect. Expanse 1.65-1.75 inch.
It is common in southern Florida and Cuba. The other species, E. minyas, which is much larger and equally beautifully marked, is found in southern Texas and thence ranges southward into Brazil.
Genus THECLA Fabricius
(The Hair-streaks).
Mostly small butterflies. On the upper side very often colored with iridescent blue, green, or purple, sometimes reddish or dark brown; on the under side marked with lines and spots variously arranged and often very strikingly colored. What has been said as to the eggs, larvæ, and chrysalids of the family apply as well to this as to many of the following genera, and need not be here repeated.