LEPIDOPTERA. 209 



showers, in pairing with their mates, and in laying their eggs ; after 

 which they die a natural death, or fall a prey to their numerous 

 enemies. 



These insects belong to an order called Lepidoptera, which 

 means scaly wings ; for the mealy powder with which their wings 

 are covered, when seen under a powerful microscope, is found to 

 consist of little scales, lapping over each other like the scales of 

 fishes, and implanted into the skin of the wings by short stems. 

 The body of these insects is also more or less covered with the 

 same kind of scales, together with hair or down in some species. 

 The tongue consists of two tubular threads placed side by side, 

 and thus forming an instrument for suction, which, when not in 

 use, is rolled up spirally beneath the head, and is more or less 

 covered and concealed on each side by a little scaly or hairy 

 jointed feeler. The shoulders or wing-joints of the fore-wings 

 are covered, on each side, by a small triangular piece, forming a 

 kind of epaulette, or shoulder-cover ; -and between the head and 

 the thorax is a narrow piece, clothed with scales or hairs sloping 

 backwards, which may be called the collar. The wings have a 

 few branching veins, generally forming one or two large meshes 

 on the middle. The legs are six in number, though only four are 

 used in walking by some butterflies, in which the first pair are 

 very short and are folded like a tippet on the breast ; and the feet 

 are five-jointed, and are terminated, each, by a pair of claws. 



It would be difficult, and indeed impossible, to arrange the Lep- 

 idopterous insects according to their forms, appearance, and habits, 

 in the caterpillar state, because the caterpillars of many of them 

 are as yet unknown ; and therefore it is found expedient to class- 

 ify them mostly according to the characters furnished by them in 

 the winged state. 



We may first divide the Lepidoptera into three great sections, 

 called butterflies, hawk-moths, and moths, corresponding to the 

 genera Papilio^ Sphinx^ and Phalcena of Linnaeus. 



The Butterflies (Papiliones) have threadlike antennae, which 

 are knobbed at the end ; the fore-wings in some, and all the wings 

 in the greater number, are elevated perpendicularly and turned 

 back to back, when at rest ; they have generally two little spurs 

 on the hind-legs ; and they fly by day only. 

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