Butterflies and Moths (British) — Text and Context

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In Category - Insects

Authors: Furneaux, William S. Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2010 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: Butterflies -- Great Britain; Moths -- Great Britain Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

Edition facts

Words 123,561

Reading time 538 min

Text sections 20

The source record for Butterflies and Moths (British) — Text and Context measures this digital text at 123,561 words, 8 hr 58 min estimated reading time, and 20 detected text sections.

The text analysis averages about 22.1 words per sentence, while the detected sections provide another way to judge how the source is divided.

Project Gutenberg metadata also associates the work with “Butterflies -- Great Britain,” connecting these edition facts with the source record’s subject description.

Source: Project Gutenberg record #34131

This editorial note examines the structural organization of Furneaux's 1894 guide to British Lepidoptera, focusing on the movement between species descriptions, the recurring image of metallic chrysalides, and the interplay of scientific detail with regional collecting advice.

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File: pg34131

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Having said so much concerning the principles of classification and nomenclature, we will pass on to the practical portion of the entomologist's work.

WORK AT HOME AND IN THE FIELD

_CATCHING BUTTERFLIES AND MOTHS_

It is not at all surprising that entomology should prove such a fascinating study to the young, and more especially that portion which deals with the department we are now considering. Butterflies and moths are among the most beautiful and most interesting of living creatures. The study of their life history is enchanting, and the creatures themselves are of such a size as to be conveniently handled and preserved, and withal occupy so little space that anyone with only moderate accommodation may possess a fairly typical collection.

Compare the work of the entomologist with that of one whose hobby is the study of mammals. The latter has to deal with large and cumbersome objects, a collection of which requires an enormous amount of space; and, unless he has the time and means to travel in foreign countries, he cannot get together a good typical collection of specimens representing his particular branch, for the few British mammals contain no representatives of several of the orders into which the class is divided.

Entomology is undoubtedly, _par excellence_, _the_ study for youngsters. It is equally suited to the studious and to those of an adventurous turn of mind. It leads its follower into the bright sunshine and the flowery meadows; and with body and mind pleasantly occupied, the joy of living is deeply felt. The necessary apparatus can be made by anyone. No dangerous gun is required, and there are no precipitous rocks to scale. When the autumn flowers fade the year's work of the entomologist is not done, for the arranging of his cabinet and the demands of his living specimens keep him more or less actively engaged until the flowers of the following spring call both him and the insects he loves once more into the field. And so, season after season, and year after year, he finds himself engrossed in labours so fascinating that idleness--the curse of so many of our youths--is with him an impossibility.

I assume that the readers of this book have a desire to take up the study of one branch of entomology--that of butterflies and moths--in real earnest; that they intend not only to _read_ about these interesting insects, but to _know_ them. And there is only one way in which one may really get to know living creatures; that is by searching them out in their haunts, observing their growth and habits, and by an occasional close examination in order to become acquainted with their structure.

Hence I shall in this, the practical portion of the work, give such information as will assist the beginner in catching, preserving, rearing, breeding, and arranging the specimens that are to form his collection.

_Catching Butterflies_

There was a time when we would try to capture a butterfly at rest on a flower by a quick sweep of the hand, or, more commonly, by a sharp downward stroke of the cap. We were led to this action by a mere childish love of sport, or by a desire to possess an insect simply because it was pretty. When we succeeded in securing our prize, we handled it somewhat carelessly, often passing it from one hand to the other, or boxing it in our closed and perspiring fist till our fingers were dusted with the pretty microscopic scales of the creature's wings, and the wings themselves, stripped of all their beautiful clothing, were merely transparent and veined membranes. Having thus carelessly but unintentionally deprived the creature of its greatest beauty, we set it free, often in such a damaged or exhausted condition that the poor thing could scarcely fly.

But our childish ideas and inclinations have vanished. Now we would rather watch the insect than catch it, for we find much pleasure and interest in its varied movements. And if for purposes of study we occasionally require to make one captive, we proceed in such a manner as to preserve its beauty unimpaired. The cap now gives place to a well-made and suitable net; and we are careful to provide ourselves with sufficient and proper accommodation for our captives.

It is probable that many of my readers are as yet unacquainted with the nature of an entomologist's requirements for field work, so we shall describe them, confining ourselves at first to those that are required for a butterfly hunt.

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Furneaux's Butterflies and Moths (British) moves systematically through the Lepidoptera, grouping species by genus and family. The transition from Fritillaries to the genus Vanessa is marked by a comparative sentence: “Leaving the Fritillaries, we now come to a genus … that includes seven most beautiful butterflies.” This phrase signals a deliberate structural pivot, linking the two groups by shared traits—four walking legs, spiny caterpillars, angular chrysalides—while introducing the Comma butterfly as the first example. The text thus balances taxonomic progression with accessible, observation-based description.

Structural Movement Between Species

The book’s organization relies on clear transitional phrases that guide the reader from one group to the next. After detailing the Fritillaries, Furneaux writes “Leaving the Fritillaries, we now come to a genus (Vanessa) that includes seven most beautiful butterflies.” This sentence does more than announce a new topic; it establishes a relationship between sections. The author then notes that both groups belong to the same family, inviting comparison. Such structural cues recur throughout, creating a rhythm of departure and arrival that helps the reader navigate the 123,561-word text. The effect is that of a guided tour, where each stop is introduced with a backward glance at what has just been examined.

Recurring Image: The Metallic Chrysalis

A striking visual motif appears in the description of chrysalides. Furneaux observes that the pupae of some Vanessas are “adorned more or less with brilliant metallic spots, sometimes of a rich golden hue, and sometimes resembling burnished silver.” He then traces the word “chrysalis” to a Greek word meaning “gold,” noting that it was originally applied to these metallic pupae before being extended to all Lepidoptera. This etymological aside ties language to observation, reinforcing the idea that the insects’ appearance shaped scientific terminology. The metallic image recurs in the description of the Comma’s chrysalis, though the excerpt does not specify its coloration. The motif thus serves as a unifying thread across species descriptions.

Regional Specificity in Habitat Notes

Furneaux frequently embeds local knowledge into his species accounts. For the Glanville Fritillary (Melitaea athalia), he notes that it is “met with chiefly in the open spaces of woods along the south coast and for some distance inland,” naming Devon, Cornwall, Sussex, and Kent as favored counties. He then adds a practical tip: “London entomologists would do well to search for it in Epping Forest.” This blend of distribution data and collecting advice is typical. The Comma butterfly, by contrast, “is very abundant in certain districts where hops are grown, but seems to avoid those counties that border the sea.” Such observations ground the scientific content in a specific British landscape, making the guide useful for field identification.

Voice and the Collector’s Perspective

The author’s voice is that of an experienced naturalist addressing a keen audience. He uses the first-person plural (“we may therefore expect to find”) to create a sense of shared inquiry. When describing the Comma’s wing shape, he writes that “its wings … are so irregularly scalloped on the hind margins that they present a somewhat ragged appearance.” The word “ragged” is a precise, non-technical term that conveys the butterfly’s distinctive outline. Furneaux also includes details about food plants and emergence times, such as the Comma emerging “late in the summer—August and September, but it is often seen earlier, and frequently as late as October.” These specifics reflect a collector’s calendar, not just a naturalist’s catalogue.

Readers approaching this work will benefit from paying attention to the transitional phrases that link species groups and the recurring visual details—especially the metallic chrysalides—that Furneaux uses to unify his descriptions. The regional habitat notes offer a practical dimension, while the author’s inclusive voice invites the reader to share in the act of discovery. The book rewards those who read it as a structured narrative as much as a reference work.

Furneaux’s metallic chrysalides have stayed with me, those brief golds among the muted English hedgerows, and I find myself measuring other collections by that quiet flash of wonder. There is a similar patience to the older plates in Illustrations of Exotic Entomology, Volume 1 — Themes and Context, where the tropics seem to shimmer, oddly familiar. It feels less like study, more like returning to a box of pressed wings.