HYBERNATION OF CATERPILLARS. 195 



particular facts seldom accord with actual nature, and 

 ou^ht never to be indulged in by naturalists who study 

 accuracy. Another cater[)iU:ir, not uncommon in 

 gardens, on the hollyhock and other plants, would ct 

 once disprove such an inference: we allude to that of 

 the angle shades {Pldogopliora meliculo^a, Ochsen- 

 HEiMEn). This caterpillar, which is exceedingly 

 smooth, and is remarkable for changing in its last 

 moult from a clear green to a yellowish brown, we 

 have found during the whole winter in the folds of the 

 fresh leaves of hollyhocks, cabbage-lettuce, savoys, 

 &c, quite lively, and feeding in open weather by no 

 means sparingly. Its defence from cold may perhaps 

 consist in a superabundant supply of fat, which we 

 may infer that it possesses from the soft flabby aspect. 

 It is this circumstance which seems to protect whales 

 from the polar cold; as well as bears during their tor- 

 pidity. 



Some caterpillars seem to have no less power of 

 resisting severe coldthan eggs; as authentic instan- 

 ces are recorded of their revival after being frozen 

 stiff, — a circumstance also reported of some serpents 

 in North America.* Dr Lister in this way revived 

 caterpillars frozen so hard as to chink like stones when 

 thrown into a glass;! and Mr Stickney exposed some 

 grubs of a common crane-fly ( Tipula oleracea, Linn.) 

 to a severe frost, till they were congealed into masses 

 of ice, yet several of them survived. J R aumur, 

 however, was unsuccessful in similar experiments on 

 the gregarious moth of the fir {Cnethocampa Pifyo- 

 campa, Stephens), so celebrated among the ancients 

 as a poison ;§ for none of them survived a cold of 2° 

 below zero, Fahr., by which they were frozen to ice.H 



^ John Huntor, Obs. on Anim. Fcon. p. 99. 

 t Goedart, Insect, p. 79. X Kiiby and Spencc, Intr. ii, p. 

 453. 

 § PJin. Hist, Nat. 38, 9. 11 Mem. ii. 



