24 



sharp claws of which fasten on tho outside struotnre ; then with an ( ifort the head i? drawn for- 

 ward, suddenly di.-jilayiiig the beautiful featlier-like antenna;; nest, tlie thorax, on which is 

 h rne tlie other two fiairs of legs, is libernted, and finally, the escape is completed by the 

 withdrawal of the abdomen, through the orifice thus made. Queer looking creatures they 

 are when they first p\it in an appearance, with their lara:e, fat. juicy bodies, and tiny wings. 

 AYhcn the wings are fully expanded they measure from five to six inches or more across, but 

 when fresh fiom the chrysalis they are but very little larger than the wings of a bumble bee. 

 The first necessity now for the welfare of the individual is to find a suitable location where 

 the wings njay be held in a good position for expanding, for without such favourable circum- 

 stance they would never attain a serviceable size. It is necessary tliat a position should be 

 secured where the wings may hang down as they are expanding, for wliich purpose the under 

 side of a twig is often .selected ; and here, securely suspended by the claws, the wings undergo 

 in a short time the most marvellous growth it is possible to imagine. The whole process, from 

 the time of the escape of the moth to its full maturity, seldom occupies more than from half 

 an hour to an h ur, and during this time the wings grow from the diminutive size already 

 mentioned to their full measure and capacity. 



A wing clipped from the insect immediately after its escape, and examined under the 

 microscope, reveals the fact that the thousands and tens of thi usands of scales with which the 

 wings are covered, and which afterwards assume such beautiful feather-like forms, are now 

 nearly all threadlike and undeveloped. Impressed with this thought, the mind is fairly 

 astoui.shed at the almost incredible change wrought in so limited a time, for the growth em- 

 braces not only the extension of the surface of the wing, but the enlargement and maturity of 

 every scale or feather on it, the individuals of which are but as dust to the naked eye. What 

 a wonderful and intricate system of circulation and power of nutrition must be possessed to 

 accomplish this marvellous result ! 



8oon alter their exit these moths seek their mates, and after pairing, the female begins to 

 deposits her eggs, a process which occupies some time, for the eggs are not laid in patches 

 or grou])S, but singly ; and are firmly fastened with a glutinous material to the under .side of 

 a leaf ; and as it is seldom there are more than one or two laid on any single tree or bush, a 

 considirable distance must bo traversed by the parent in the transaction of this all important 

 business. 



The number of eggs which these moths lay is astonishing, we have known a single female 

 to deposit within three days as many as 217. The eggs are a'^out one- tenth of an inch long, 

 nearly round and of a dull creamy white colour, with a reddish spot or streak near the centre, 

 the duration of the egg staae is usually from about a week to ten days. 



At the expiration of this period the larva eats its way out of the egg, the empty shell of 

 which furni.shes the young creature with its first meal. On its first appearance it is black, with 

 little shining black knobs on its body, from which arise hairs of the same colour. Being 

 furnished with a ravenous appetite its growth is very rapid ; and from time to time its exterior 

 co.it or skin bi'comes too tight for its comfort, when it is ruptured and thrown off. At each 

 of these changes or moultings, the caterpillar appears in an altered garb, gradually becoming 



more like the full grown larva represented by Fig. 19. It is very hand.sorae. Its body is pale 



• 



Fib. 19. 



