INSECTS 



bronzy greens ; which appear to depend on very mi- 

 nute and closely applied scales that overlap each 

 other. The main stem of the feather that is, the pri- 

 mary rod or axis is somewhat sparsely clothed with 

 scales of another kind, thin, oblong, flat plates, 

 notched at the end, and very slightly attached by 

 means of a minute stem at the base the common 

 clothing scales of the Lepidoptera. 



We may acquire some glimpse of a notion why 

 this remarkable development of antennae is bestowed 

 upon the male sex of this moth by an acquaintance 

 with its habits. It has been long a practice with en- 

 tomologists, when they have reared a female moth 

 from the chrysalis, to avail themselves of the instincts 

 of the species to capture the male. This sex has an 

 extraordinary power of discovering the female at im- 

 mense distances, and though perfectly concealed; 

 and will crowd toward her from all quarters, enter- 

 ing into houses, beating at windows, and even de- 

 scending chimneys, to come at the dear object of their 

 solicitude. Collectors call this mode of procuring 

 the male "sembling," that is "assembling," because 

 the insects of the sex assemble at one point. It can 

 not be practiced with all insects, nor even with all 

 moths ; those of this family, Bombycidae, are in gen- 

 eral available; and of these, none is more celebrated 

 for the habit than the oak egger. The very individual 

 whose antenna has furnished us with this observation 

 was taken in this way; for having bred a female of 

 this species, one evening I put her into a basket in my 

 parlor. One male, the same evening, came dashing 

 into the kitchen; but the next day, soon after noon, 



