416 THE DEATH'S-HEAD MOTH. 



appendages. In most instances the wings are conjoined by means of the bristle and loop 

 which have already been mentioned. 



The first family of the Moths is the Sphingidae, a group which contains a great number 

 of swift-winged insects, popularly and appropriately called Hawk-moths, from the strength 

 and speed of their flight. In many instances the proboscis is of great length, sometimes 

 equalling the length of the entire body, and in such instances it is found that the insect is able 

 to feed- while on the wing, balancing itself before a flower, hovering on tremulous wing, and 

 extracting the sweets by suction. In some cases, however, such as the well-known death's- 

 head moth, the proboscis is very short, barely exceeding the length of the head. In the long- 

 tongued Hawk-moths the chrysalis is furnished with a distinct horny case, in which the 

 elongated proboscis can be packed during the period occupied in development. In the genus 

 Smerinthus the wings are sharp and angulated, and the tongue is short. 



ONE of the commonest species of this genus is the LIME HAWK-MOTH, so called because 

 the larva feeds on the leaves of the lime-tree. It is a green caterpillar, thick-bodied, covered 

 with little protuberances, and upon each side are some whitish streaks edged with red or yel- 

 low. Just at the end of the tail there is a short knobby protuberance, and the fore part of 

 the body is rather narrow. When the larva has completed its time of feeding, it descends to 

 the ground, and buries itself about eighteen inches deep in the earth, whence the chrysalis 

 may be extracted in the winter by the help of a pickaxe and trowel. Beside the lime, the elm 

 and birch are favored residences of this insect. 



Although very common in some places, it seems to be rather local, being scarcely, if ever, 

 found in many spots where the trees which it loves are abundant. The color is very variable, 

 but the general tints are leaf-brown and green, with a few blackish spots and stripes, the 

 brown being towards the base and the olive-green towards the tips of the wing. 



An allied species, termed Smerinthus ocellatus, is seen in the engraving on page 419. 



The splendid insect, appropriately named the DEATH'S-HEAD MOTH, is tolerably common 

 throughout Europe, though, from its natural habits and the instinct of concealment with 

 which the caterpillar is endowed, it is not so frequently seen as many rarer insects. Owing 

 to the remarkably faithful delineation of a skull and bones upon the back of the thorax, the 

 insect is often an object of great terror to the illiterate, and has more than once thrown a 

 whole province into consternation, the popular idea being that it was some infra-natural being 

 that was sent upon the earth as a messenger of pestilence and woe, if not indeed the shape 

 assumed by some witch residing in the neighborhood. 



I once saw a whole congregation checked while coming out of church, and assembled in a 

 wide and terrified circle around a poor Death's-head Moth that was quietly making its way 

 across the churchyard-walk. No one dared to approach the terrible being, until at last the 

 village blacksmith took heart of grace, and with a long jump leaped upon the moth and 

 crushed it beneath his hobnailed shoes. I keep the flattened insect in my cabinet, as an 

 example of popular ignorance and the destructive nature with which such ignorance is always 

 accompanied. 



Although in itself a perfectly harmless creature, it yet has one unpleasant habit, and is 

 said to make its way into bee-hives, for the purpose of feeding on the honey. Still, its num- 

 bers are so inconsiderable, that it could do but little harm in an apiary, and need not be 

 dreaded by the owner. 



The caterpillar of this moth is enormously large, sometimes measuring five inches in 

 length, and being very stoutly made. It feeds on various plants, the jessamine and potato 

 being its favorites, and may be best found by traversing potato-grounds in the night, and 

 directing the light of a bull's-eye lantern among the leaves. It can be readily kept and bred, 

 but requires some careful tending, and it must be remembered that it will only eat the par- 

 ticular food to which it has been accustomed, and if bred among the potato will refuse the jes- 

 samine leaf, and vice versa. When the caterpillar is about to change into its chrysalis state, 

 it should be placed in a vessel containing seven or eight inches of earth, which should be kept 

 moderately damp by means of a moist sponge or wet piece of moss laid on the top. If this 



