lighter, and the hind wings are beautifully marbled with various greys and browns.
This species is not nearly so common as the two preceding, but it is very widely distributed, and is exceedingly abundant in some parts. On some of the heathery cliffs and downs of the south and south-west coasts it is so plentiful that the butterflies are started into the air at almost every step, for it seldom flies except when disturbed. It is a common insect in Ireland, and also in parts of Scotland.
The caterpillar is a hybernator, and may be found feeding on grasses in the autumn and the spring. It changes to the chrysalis in June, and the perfect insect is on the wing from June to the beginning of September.
The colour of the caterpillar is pinkish drab above, and greenish drab beneath. A dark brown stripe, edged with a lighter colour, passes down the middle of the back, and a dark line on each side. It changes to a dark reddish-brown chrysalis on the surface of the ground, or, according to some observers, a little beneath the surface.
The Meadow Brown (Epinephele Janira)
Although this very common butterfly is usually considered to be the dingiest of its family, yet it must be admitted that the colour of a freshly emerged specimen is really very rich.
The male is of a dark brown colour, with an indistinct patch of a lighter tawny brown near the outer margin of the fore wings, and a white-centred black eye-spot near the costal angle of the same wings. The female ([Plate V], fig. 8) is of a lighter colour, the eye-spot on her fore wings is larger and far more conspicuous, and an irregular patch of light orange brown occupies a large area of each of the same wings. She is, moreover, larger than her mate, and in every way a more attractive insect.
The Meadow Brown abounds everywhere, from June to September, and may be seen on grass land and waste grounds where other butterflies are seldom found.
The caterpillar is green, and is rendered slightly rough by a number of minute warts. There is also a white stripe on each side. It feeds on various grasses in the autumn, hybernates during the winter, and is full grown in May.