BUTTERFLIES AND MOTHS. 197 



distinguished. None are more ubiquitous than the 

 " Silver Y," with a bright silvery mark on the fore- 

 wings not unlike a " y," or a Greek gamma (y). It 

 is difficult to fix the limits of these common species ; 

 gardens or woods, they seem to be equally at home 

 everywhere. Our space compels us to be content 

 with a few suggestions, and then to hurry on. 



Caterpillars are in themselves a study, and a 

 very interesting one. Some are hairy, and some 

 smooth. Of the hairy kinds, some have the 

 hairs rather equally distributed, others have them 

 collected in tufts. Almost every large group of 

 moths exhibits some peculiarity in the caterpillars ; 

 hence the practical entomologist will be able to 

 determine the group to which the moth resulting 

 from any given caterpillar belongs. One large group 

 of caterpillars have this peculiarity, that the legs are 

 confined to the two extremities, so that in walking 

 they proceed by a series of loops, projecting their 

 heads forward, then drawing up their tails they form 

 a loop, and for this reason they are called " loopers." 

 The insects developed from these caterpillars have 

 slender bodies and large wings, the latter usually 

 remaining expanded when the moth is at rest. One 

 of the largest of these moths is the pale, sulphur- 

 coloured swallow-tail moth, 1 which flies along hedges 

 at dusk. Probably the commonest is the ** Yellow 

 Shell," 2 which will be found in every bush. Nearly 

 as common is the large black and white " Magpie," 

 especially in gardens on gooseberry and currant 



1 Ourapteryx sambucaria. 2 Camptogamma fatineata. 



