THE KED AND BLACK TIGER CATERPILLAR. 



19 



cultivated croj). This is probably on account of their solitary 

 feeding habits and the numerous parasites that prey upon 

 them. 



Prof. J. H. Comstock has published the following graphic 

 account of the habits of these caterpillars : " ' Hurrying along 

 like a caterpillar in the fall' is a common saying among the 

 country people in New England, and probably had its origin 

 in observations made upon the larva of the Isabella tiger moth. 

 This is the evenly clipped, furry caterpillar, reddish brown in 

 the middle and black at either end, which is seen so commonly 

 in the autumn and early 



■■'^^-.Mk-^ 



Fig. 20. — Isabella Tiger Moth. 



spring. Its evident haste 

 to get somewhere, in the 

 autumn, is almost pain- 

 ful to witness. A nerv- 

 ous anxiety is evident in 

 every undulating move- 

 ment of its body, and fre- 

 quently its shining black head is raised high in the air and 

 moved from side to side while it gets its bearings. Occasion- 

 ally after such an observation it evidently finds it is mistaken 

 and turns sharply and hastens along faster than ever in another 

 direction. So far as we can judge, its excitement comes from 

 a sudden fear that winter will overtake it before it can find a 

 cosy protected corner in which to pass its winter sleep." 



The hairy caterpillars of this and some closely related moths 

 are often called " woolly bears " in New England. In other 

 regions this species is named "the hedgehog caterpillar" on 

 account of its habit of curling up when disturbed. 



