MOTHS OF THE LIMBERLOST 



evening, and the most important class of big, exquisitely 

 lovely ones only at night. This explains why so many 

 people never have seen them, and it is a great pity, for 

 the nocturnal non-feeding moths are birdlike in size, 

 flowerlike in rare and complicated colouring, and of 

 downy, silent wing. 



The moths that fly by day and feed are of the Sphing- 

 intje group, Celeus and Carolina, or Choerocampinse, which 

 includes the exquisite Deilephila Lineata, and its cousins; 

 also Sphingidae, which cover the clear-winged Hemaris 

 diffinis and Thysbe. Among those that fly at night only 

 and take no food are the members of what is called the 

 Attacine group, comprising our largest and commonest 

 moth, Cecropia; also its near relative Gloveri, smaller 

 than Cecropia and of lovely rosy wine-colour; Anguli- 

 fera, the male grayish brown, the female yellowish red; 

 Promethea, the male resembling a monster Mourning 

 Cloak butterfly and the female bearing exquisite red-wine 

 flushings; Cynthia, beautiful in shades of olive green, 

 sprinkled with black, crossed by bands of pinkish lilac 

 and bearing crescents partly yellow, the remainder 

 transparent. There are also the deep yellow lo, pale 

 blue-green Luna, and Polyphemus, brown with pink 

 bands of the Saturniidse; and light yellow, red-brown and 

 gray Regalis, and lavender and yellow Imperialis of the 

 Ceratocampidse, and their relatives. Modest and lovely 

 Modesta belongs with the Smerinthinse group; and there 



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