_Caterpillar._--The life-history in all the stages will be found minutely described by Edwards in "The Butterflies of North America," vol. ii, and by Scudder in "The Butterflies of New England," vol. i. The mature larva is black, banded with orange-red, and beset with short, bristly, black spines. Before and during hibernation, which takes place after the third moult, the caterpillars are gregarious, and construct for themselves a web in which they pass the winter. After the rigors of winter are past, and the food-plant, which is commonly _Chelone glabra_, begins to send up fresh shoots, they recover animation, scatter, and fall to feeding again, and after the fifth moult reach maturity.
_Chrysalis._--The chrysalis is pendant, formed generally at a considerable distance from the spot where the caterpillar feeds, for the larvæ wander off widely just before pupation. It is pearly-gray, blotched with dark brown in stripes and spots, with some orange markings.
This very beautiful butterfly is quite local, found in colonies in swampy places where the food-plant grows, but in these spots sometimes appearing in swarms. It occurs in the northern portions of the United States and in Canada, extending as far north as the Lake of the Woods, and as far south as West Virginia. It does not occur west of the Rocky Mountains.
(2) =Melitæa chalcedon=, Doubleday and Hewitson, Plate XVI, Fig. 2, ♂ (Chalcedon).
_Butterfly._--The male and female are much alike. The wings are black, spotted with red and ochreous-yellow. On the under side they are brick-red, with the spots of the upper side repeated, and in addition at the base a number of large and distinct yellow spots. Expanse, ♂, 1.75-2.00 inches; ♀, 2.50 inches.
_Early Stages._--For a knowledge of these the reader may consult Edwards, "The Butterflies of North America," vol. i, and "Papilio," vol. iv, p. 63; Wright, "Papilio," vol. iii, p. 123, and other authorities. The egg is pale yellowish when first laid, pitted at the base, and ribbed vertically above. The caterpillar is black, with the bristling processes on the segments longer than in the preceding species. The chrysalis is pale gray, blotched with brown. The food-plants are _Mimulus_ and _Castileja_.