90 OUR HOUSEHOLD INSECTS 



and to get a clear and accurate notion of those that 

 inhabit our houses, and of their relations to one another, 

 and to the other members of the group, it will be neces- 

 sary first to say a few words about the order Lepidoptera 

 in general. 



The word Lepidoptera means " scale wings," the scales 

 being that mealy powder which constitutes the colora- 

 tion and pattern of the wings above and below, and 

 which, in one form or other, is found in all species of 

 the order, and may be regarded as characteristic. Now, 

 in the first place, this large order may, for convenience 

 sake, be roughly, though not very scientifically, divided 

 into two great groups, which are known as the Macro- 

 Lepidoptera and the Micro-Lepidoptera, i.e., the " great " 

 and " small " Lepidoptera. For brevity's sake, these long 

 names are usually curtailed to Macros and Micros respec- 

 tively. In the former group are included the butterflies, 

 and the majority of the more conspicuous and familiar 

 of the insects called moths all those insects, in fact, 

 which are sought after so eagerly by the majority of 

 "butterfly catchers." Most of them are of tolerably 

 imposing proportions. The latter group, on the other 

 hand, few people, except those who specially study them, 

 know or care anything about ; the reason for this neglect 

 being merely the small size of the majority. To be small 

 is often to be despised, and so the Micros get scant atten- 

 tion, even from professed collectors. Yet it is to these 

 despised Micros that our household moths belong, so 

 that, economically at least, some of them are of con- 

 siderable importance, and ought to be of corresponding 

 interest. 



A few of the Macros often choose our houses to hiber- 

 nate in, but the members of this group do not, as a rule, 

 court our society. The chief inducements for them to 



