THE CASE MOTHS. 



659 



paling, drawing together and permanently closing the head open- 

 ing. It reverses its position in the case, so that the head is where 

 the tail used to be — pointed toward the posterior or unattached end 

 — and envelops itself in a soft silken cocoon of a yellowish color; 

 allowing itself to hang perpendicularly, head downward, it awaits 

 the pupal sleep. 



From the facts just stated it need hardly be said that, when the 

 time arrives, the perfect insect emerges from the posterior portion 

 of the tube. At this particular time the 

 male pupa becomes endowed with the 

 power of stretching out its segments, to 

 enable it to work its way out of 

 the extremity. Through the 

 opening of the posterior end it 

 pushes the anterior half of its 

 length, by a slight elongation 

 and contraction of the body, 

 which, with the assistance 

 of a transverse series of mi- 

 nute sharp spines or 

 hooks, directed back- 

 ward, on some of the 

 •segments, is in this 

 way forced out head 

 foremost, in like man- 

 ner as the pup£e of the 

 goat moths and the 

 large swifts are made 

 to emerge from tim- 

 ber and the earth 

 when the moth is '~ ^ 



ready to escape. The pupae are prevented from being thrust en- 

 tirely out of the case by two strong anal hooks. After the issue of 

 the imago the segments remain in their stretched-out condition; 

 ■cases having belonged to males are often seen with the empty pupa 

 •skin sticking rather more than half out of the lower aperture, hang- 

 ing head downward, as left by the moth. 



The males of these moths are swift fliers, of extraordinary activ- 

 ity, dashing themselves wildly, almost to pieces, among the branches 

 of the trees. A fiery little creature has no sooner arisen from his 

 pupal slumber than he begins his violent fluttering, and as the wings 

 are delicate in structure, in many instances nearly transparent, his 

 beauty has generally disappeared before the entomologist can secure 

 •him; therefore specimens in good order are rare in collections. 



%Vha^i,^]l 



