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the wings, ends in a tongued ball and socket joint, which 

 acts on a short joint, which in turn acts on another short 

 and curiously-shaped joint, and so on, often for five or six 

 joints; to these, no doubt, are attached strong muscles. It 

 must be evident, with tliis large number of small joints, that 

 the wings are capable of very complicated movements. 

 Here is no simple u]D and down movement, but a series of 

 gyrations and reflex actions that propel the body with such 

 surprising speed, and at the same time enables the insect to 

 remain hovering over a flower with such precision and 

 balance that, as in the case of the convolvulus hawk moth, it 

 can unfurl its two-inch tongue and drive it into a flower, in 

 order that it may sip the sweet nectars with the same ease 

 and stability as if it were standing on its solid edge, whilst 

 at the least interruption it is away like a flash of lightning. 

 At either side of the thorax, attached to the first tergite, 

 is a loose shoulder-piece densely clothed with scale hairs that 

 cover and protect the joints. 



This is a short description of the head and thorax of 

 lepidoptera, and offers an immense field of study in any 

 one ])art, as each species will show a certain amount of 

 variation best fitted for the insect's requirements, and I am 

 sure would form the subject of great interest to anyone who 

 would specialise on a particular part, and would yield a 

 valuable contribution to .science to any microscopist who 

 can afford the time for investigation. 



