CLOTHES MOTHS AND OTHER TINE^E 105 



take the trouble to bite off neat pieces of this material, 

 and weave them carefully and deftly together, as the 

 clothes moths would do, but seizes hold of anything 

 near, whatever its size, and attaches it as it is by one 

 of its ends, so that the pile seems little more than an 

 accidental heap. Under this it can feed at its ease. 

 But a keen eye will soon detect traces of its presence, in 

 the shape of pellets of excrement thrust out from the 

 end of its tunnel. It is particularly fond of invading 

 an entomologist's store of insects, and if he be by any 

 means careless enough to grant it a footing, he will find 

 immense damage done before he suspects anything, and 

 also find that his little foes are very difficult of eradica- 

 tion. The ravages in such cases are really very cleverly 

 concealed, e.g., the unfortunate collector, noticing one 

 of his larger moths, say, with its wings drooping appa- 

 rently a little more than usual, essays to remove the 

 specimen with a view to discovering the cause, when he 

 finds that, as he pulls out the pin on which it is impaled, 

 he removes no more than a mere shell of the body, and 

 leaves the wings attached to the bottom of the box; 

 pseudo-spretella has been at work, and has cleverly 

 fastened down the wings of the moth, but in such a way 

 as hardly to disturb their position, and then, using them 

 as a roof, has proceeded to scoop out the contents of the 

 body, being still careful to leave the skin entire, so that, 

 until the tug at the pin reveals to the chagrined ento- 

 mologist the utter destruction of his specimen, it looks 

 almost as perfect as ever. 



From this habit of concealment, practised by both 

 larvse and perfect insects, it often happens that vast 

 damage is done before the presence of the destroyer is 

 suspected, and in any case the damage is sure to be 

 great, so much more being spoilt by being woven into 



