354 ZOOLOGY 
This group contains a number of well-known moths, such 
as Lasiocampa quercus, the oak egger; Bombyx mori, the silk- 
worm ; Cnethocampa processionea, the processional moth ; Cossus 
ligniperda, the goat moth, etc. 
IV. SPHINGINA. 
The hawk-moths or humming - bird moths are large 
Lepidoptera with short bodies and long powerful wings. Their 
flight is swift and sustained, and they fly usually at twilight. 
The antennae are short and taper to a point. The proboscis is 
very long, and can suck up honey from the depths of a flower 
without the insect alighting. The sexes are as a rule alike. 
The caterpillars have sixteen legs, and the last segment bears 
an anal horn or tubercle. They elevate the anterior portion 
of their body like a Sphinx, and remain for hours in this posi- 
tion; as a rule they are brightly coloured, and their skin is 
smooth. The pupae form rough cocoons of earth underground, 
and the proboscis is usually free. About 400 species are 
known, many of which are tropical. 
Sesia apiformis, the clearwing, has transparent wings and 
a bee-like appearance; Acherontia atropos is the death’s-head 
moth ; Sphinx ligustri the privet moth. 
V. RHOPALOCERA. 
The butterflies are mostly brightly coloured, and are diurnal 
in their habits, loving the sun. The majority are easily dis- 
tinguished from the moths by their clubbed or knobbed 
antennae. Their body is small, and the abdomen is, relatively 
to the rest of the body, considerably smaller than in the moths. 
The legs are slender and often reduced, rendering walking a 
matter of some difficulty. The wings are held erect when the 
insect is at rest, and the anterior is never linked to the 
posterior by a bristle and socket, as is often the case with 
moths. The caterpillars have sixteen feet, and are naked or 
hairy, with varying markings and tubercles. They do not 
form cocoons, but turn into chrysalids with an angular contour; 
as a rule these are suspended to a twig or stalk by a silken 
