LEPIDOPTERA 



185 



great amount of silk is used in the construction of the cocoon; in others 

 the cocoon is composed principally of the hairs of the larva, which are 

 fastened together with a fine web of silk. 



Fig. 328. — Pupa of a moth. 



Fig. 327. — Cocoon of a moth. 



The pupae of the Lepidoptera are typically of the obtected type; that 

 is, the developing wings, legs, mandibles, maxilla?, and antennae are 

 glued to the surface of the body (Fig. 

 328); but in some of the more general- 

 ized forms these appendages are free. 



The members of this order as a rule 

 feed upon plants, and are not aquatic; 

 some, as the clothes-moth and the species 

 that destroy scale-insects, feed on animal 

 matter, and a very few feed upon plants 

 below the surface of the water. 



More than nine thousand species of Lepidoptera are known to occur 

 in America, north of Mexico. These represent more than sixty families. 



We commonly divide the Lepidoptera into two groups; the moths 

 and the butterflies. There is, however, a group within the division of 

 butterflies known as the skippers, which constitutes a fairly well-defined 

 assemblage of forms. 



The moths. • — These are the insects commonly called millers. 

 Most of the species fly by night and are frequently attracted to lights. 

 When at rest the wings are either wrapped around the body, or are 

 spread horizontally, or are folded roof -like on the abdomen; except in a 

 few cases they are not held in a vertical position above the body. The 

 antennae of moths are of various forms; they are usually thread-like or 

 feather-like; only in rare cases are they enlarged towards the tip. 



The butterflies. — All of our species of butterflies fly in the daytime; 

 and, with few exceptions, they fold the wings together above the back in 

 a vertical position when at rest. The antennae are thread-like, and 

 usually with a club at the tip. It was this feature that suggested the 

 term Rhopalocera, which is applied to them. 



The group of butterflies as defined here includes the representatives of 

 two quite distinct superfamilies, the Hesperioidea or skippers, and the 

 Papilionoidea or true butterflies. 



The skippers are so called on account of their peculiar mode of flight. 

 They fly in the daytime and dart suddenly from place to place. When at 

 rest they usually hold the wings erect in a vertical position like the true 

 butterflies; often the fore wings are thus held while the hind wings are 

 extended horizontally. The antennae are thread-like, and enlarged to- 



