126 THE SPINY ELM CATERPILLAR 



THE LIFE HISTORY OF THE CATERPILLAR 



During sunny days in spring one may often see a beautiful 

 purple-black butterfly, having a cream-colored border along 

 the outer margin of its wings, flying leisurely about. This 

 butterfly is called the Mourning Cloak or Antiopa Butterfly; 

 it is represented nearly natural size in Fig. 41. It has passed 

 the winter in this adult condition, having found shelter in 

 some retreat where it was not directly exposed to the storm 

 and stress of the weather. 



Fig. 42. Butterfly just after depositing eggs (a). 



When the leaves of elm, willow, and poplar trees are nearly 

 expanded these butterflies deposit their eggs upon the twigs. 

 These eggs are laid in clusters encircling the twig, there being 

 twenty or more in each cluster; their general appearance is 

 shown in Fig. 42. In the act of oviposition the butterfly keeps 

 her wings spread out, moving the body and abdomen about as 

 the placing of the eggs necessitates. About two weeks after 

 the clusters of eggs are thus laid upon the twigs of the food- 

 plant they hatch into small blackish caterpillars, each emerg- 

 ing from the egg-shell through a small hole that it eats out of 

 the upper surface. They thus enter upon the second stage of 



