66 



Marvels of Insect Life* 



of the actual species parasitized by the fly, but we fail to see that he had any evidence 

 to that effect. It might be so ; and they may have been watching rejoicingly to see 

 how many enemies of their race were being safely interred in the stem of the thistle ! 



The Dragon-Moth. 



Similar in some respects to the lobster and the puss as a moth, this Insect in 

 the caterpillar stage reminds one most of the lobster, but owing to its method of 

 preparing for the moth's escape from the cocoon, the chrysalis is the most interesting 

 stage. The dragon, ^ though fairly distributed over Europe, does not occur in 

 Britain. It owes its name to the appearance presented by the caterpillar. In this 

 stage it has a rough green skin mottled with yellow, and the head is red. But it is 

 the form and not the colour that is singular : the six middle segments of its bod}' 

 end each above in a pointed red hump. The first of these humps is larger than the 



others and forked. 

 A long, tapering 

 blotch of flesh tint is 

 conspicuous on each 

 side of the middle 

 segments. It has the 

 lobster - caterpillar's 

 trick of elevating its 

 hinder parts, which 

 here assume the form 



k ^-^^^J^BUBMiS^lS'iSl^Sli^S^'^^^Bl^ ^^ ^ somewhat 



!■ ^^^^^^^^^^BHlBQs-1 ^nOi^ squarish plate whose 



K "'"'''^^MK ^SL l t l gl^ fc-f , / centre is marked 



W ^nfilMBliHfe'''^- "======= with a brownish 



f ^|^U^^^_ SS^Se blotch margined 



with yellow. What 

 are in other cater- 

 pillars clasping 

 organs at the ex- 

 tremity of the body here take the form of two downward-pointing spines. 

 Viewed from the rear, this plate looks like the face of some creature whose 

 head is raised in readiness for an attack, and the two downward-pointing spines 

 look like distended jaws. This, no doubt, is an artifice for preventing an attack 

 from the rear. In the juvenile condition this dragon has a pair of side horns in 

 front, but these are discarded in the course of growth. Dr. T. A. Chapman, who 

 is one of the most acute of modern observers, was puzzled to know why any 

 caterpillar should have so remarkable a form and such singular humps and 

 angularities. Pursuing his incpiiries he found that, viewed from the side, it exactly 

 resembled an oak-leaf that had been rolled by one of the abundant leaf- 

 rolling tortrix-caterpillars. 



Like the caterpillar of the puss-moth, the dragon spins a close-fitting cocoon in 

 the crevices of the bark, and works into the outer surface fragments of bark and 



^ Hoplitis milhauseri. 



Photo by, iHiiinhi Biistin. 



The Dragon-Caterpillar. 



This caterpillar has a rougli, green skin mottled with yellow, and a red head. The six middle rings 

 end above in a pointed hump, of which the first of the- series is larger and forked. It has a trick of 

 elevating its hinder parts, which end in a squarish plate with two downward-pointing spines. Viewed 

 from the rear, this looks Uke a head with distended jaws and raised for attack. 



