CHAPTER II 



THE PINE PROCESSIONARY: THE NEST; THE 

 COMMUNITY 



NOVEMBER arrives, however, bringing 

 cold weather; the time has come to build 

 the stout winter tabernacle. High up in the 

 pine the tip of a bough is chosen, with suitably 

 close-packed and convergent leaves. The 

 spinners surround it with a spreading network, 

 which bends the adjacent leaves a little nearer 

 and ends by incorporating them into the 

 fabric. In this way they obtain an enclosure 

 half silk, half leaves, capable of withstanding 

 the inclemencies of the weather. 



Early in December the work has increased 

 to the size of a man's two fists or more. In 

 its ultimate perfection, it attains a volume of 

 nearly half a gallon by the end of winter. 



It is roughly egg-shaped, tapering to a cert- 

 ain length below and extended into a sheath 

 which envelops the supporting branch. The 

 origin of this silky extension is as follows: 

 every evening between seven and nine o'clock, 

 27 



