I am currently writing a PDF file on the history of UK butterflies and their names and wondered if anyone had any useful information I could use. I have a list of names and wondered if anyone had any information on them, what the butterfly was that was given these names, why the names were given etc...?
Old butterfly names I have a list of:
The streakt Golden Hogg (1704) Male
The Spotless Hogg (1704) Female
The chequer-like Hogg (1704) Male
The Chequered Hogg (1704) Female
The Streakt cloudy Hog (1717) Male
The Cloudy Hog (1717) Female
Handleys Brown Butterfly (1704)
Handleys Brown Hog Butterfly (1706)
Handleys Small Brown Butterfly (1717)
Are these the Marsh Fritillary early names? (Names in bold)
Our brown Marsh Fratillary (1699,1704)
Small-Spotted brown Marsh Fritillary (1717)
Mr Dandridge's March Fritillary (1704, 1717)
Mr Ray's Alpine Butterfly (Guessing either the Apollo or Small Apollo since they are on list of known British Butterflies from past)
The Royal William (1699) - The Swallowtail?
Willow Butterfly
Elm Tortoiseshell
Nettle Tortoiseshell
Scarlet Admirable (Red Admiral?)
White Admirable
Thistle Butterfly (Painted Lady?)
Silver Streak Fritillary
Violet Silver Spotted Fritillary
Wood Argus
Brown Argus
Orange Argus
Clouded Argus
Small Argus
Manchester Argus
Scarce Spotted Skipper
August Skipper
Brown Blue
Clouded Orange
Marbled Argus
there is more names that this I think
History of butterfly names
- Dave McCormick
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History of butterfly names
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- Charles Nicol
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Re: History of butterfly names
Hi Dave
You might like to look at this thread from another place:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=42678
Charles
You might like to look at this thread from another place:
http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=42678
Charles
Re: History of butterfly names
This is a huge subject Dave. I have been able to glean some of the old names from Butterflies by E.B.Ford (the first New Naturalist book) and from A Moth Hunter's Gossip by P.B.M.Allan.
The Hoggs were skippers. The Spotless Hogg was apparently the Small Skipper and the Cloudy Hogg the Large Skipper. The Marsh Frit. was known as Dandridge's Black Fritillary. Handley's Small Brown butterfly was the Dingy Skipper. The Royal William was Petiver's name for the Swallowtail. Some of his other names were The Half-Mourner for the Marbled White and The Greenish Marbled Half-Mourner for the Bath White. The Pale Comma was his name for the hutchinsoni form of the Comma. It is interesting that Petiver used the names Admiral and White Admiral: it was only later authors such as Wilkes and Moses Harris who used the name Admirable. The Manchester Argus was the Large Heath, that was once common on the mosses thereabouts, and the Orange Argus was the Large Copper. Almost any butterfly with ocelli was liable to be called an argus.
I think you will have to do quite a bit of research on this topic. The above is just a start.
Misha
The Hoggs were skippers. The Spotless Hogg was apparently the Small Skipper and the Cloudy Hogg the Large Skipper. The Marsh Frit. was known as Dandridge's Black Fritillary. Handley's Small Brown butterfly was the Dingy Skipper. The Royal William was Petiver's name for the Swallowtail. Some of his other names were The Half-Mourner for the Marbled White and The Greenish Marbled Half-Mourner for the Bath White. The Pale Comma was his name for the hutchinsoni form of the Comma. It is interesting that Petiver used the names Admiral and White Admiral: it was only later authors such as Wilkes and Moses Harris who used the name Admirable. The Manchester Argus was the Large Heath, that was once common on the mosses thereabouts, and the Orange Argus was the Large Copper. Almost any butterfly with ocelli was liable to be called an argus.
I think you will have to do quite a bit of research on this topic. The above is just a start.
Misha
- Dave McCormick
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Re: History of butterfly names
HI, Thanks for help, I can tell this might be a lengthy project and may take some research. Thought the hoggs were skippers. I'll do one species at a time and see what I come up with
Cheers all,
My Website: My new website: http://daveslepidoptera.com/ - Last Update: 11/10/2011
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- Dave McCormick
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Re: History of butterfly names
I am working on some of the species I know about so far. Anyone know when the Small Tortoiseshell was named the "Nettle Butterfly"? It was called the lesser (Common) Tortoise-shell Butterfly (1699) by James Petiver.
Cheers all,
My Website: My new website: http://daveslepidoptera.com/ - Last Update: 11/10/2011
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Re: History of butterfly names
There is a pretty comprehensive listing of historic names for British butterflies in Michael Salmon's The Aurelian Legacy.
- Dave McCormick
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Re: History of butterfly names
cheers, I might just see if there is a copy about.
Cheers all,
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- Padfield
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Re: History of butterfly names
You can also find most of the answers in Heath (The Moths and Butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland Volume 7 Part 1), which has a section at the end of each species entry on the history of the vernacular names. Some of them are quite surprising. 'Our marsh fritillary', for example, was the grizzled skipper, if I remember correctly (but I don't have my copy with me here in CH)!
Guy
Guy
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- Dave McCormick
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Re: History of butterfly names
Hi guy,
Just realised I have that book somewhere, might be a good place to start anyway.
Just realised I have that book somewhere, might be a good place to start anyway.
Cheers all,
My Website: My new website: http://daveslepidoptera.com/ - Last Update: 11/10/2011
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