This is the largest of all the subfamilies, numbering more than a hundred and seventy species in the United States. They are mostly large or of medium size, and include many of the commonest and most conspicuous butterflies we have. One of the most interesting members of this group is _Dione vanillae_, the Red Silverspot. The wings are bright red on the upper surface, with black veins and markings; the under side shows a spangled effect of brown and silver. The wings are unusually long, and the butterfly has a disagreeable odor which protects it from its enemies; these and other facts have led some lepidopterists to class this butterfly with the Heliconians. The eggs are reddish brown in color, and are found on the passion-vine; the caterpillar is marked with orange and drab, and bears six rows of branching spines. The chrysalis has an unusual form due to a pronounced dorsal depression; it is usually a grayish tan in color. _Dione vanillae_ is found in the whole southern half of the United States, being especially abundant about New Orleans, and in southern California. W. H. Edwards took a specimen at Coalburg, West Virginia, and it has been reported from as far north as Worcester, Mass. _Grapta interrogationis_, the Question Mark butterfly, is common in all parts of the United States except the Pacific coast region. The upper sides of both wings are reddish brown, spotted with dark brown and edged with a faint violet color. The peculiar angular shape of the fore wings, and the little tails on the hind wings, are the outstanding characteristics of the Question Mark and its relatives. The under side of the wings shows a mottled light brown, like a dead leaf; on the under side of the hind wing is found the silver mark resembling a Greek interrogation point (something like the English semicolon) which gave the butterfly its name. The eggs are deposited on elm trees, hop-vines, and several kinds of nettles. The caterpillar is reddish in color, covered with branching spines. The chrysalis is brown or greenish, with a conspicuous protuberance in the thoracic region. _Vanessa antiopa_, the Mourning Cloak butterfly, may be remembered as the first butterfly to be seen in the early Spring. The upper surface of the wings is a rich reddish purple, with a yellow border and a row of blue spots just inside it. The under side is gray, and blends perfectly with the dead twigs upon which the butterfly is accustomed to perch. The eggs are laid in clusters on the elm, willow, and poplar trees; the dark, spiny caterpillars live in small colonies, and spin a sort of web among the leaves of the food plant. The chrysalid is much like that of the Question Mark butterfly. In the autumn the Mourning Cloak crawls into a hollow tree or under a bit of loose bark and sleeps all through the winter, often flying in the Spring before the snow has melted, and long before the first leaves have appeared.