FEATHERED THORN. 63 



of the male. The Moth, which is plentiful in 

 most parts of England, flies about the end of 

 autumn, and the caterpillar may be taken 

 towards the end of spring, as it feeds upon 

 the oak. 



The reader may as well bear in mind that the 

 oak is a perfect treasury of caterpillar life. The 

 simplest mode of taking the larvae is to have a 

 sheet held under the branches, and then strike 

 them smartly with a stick, when a wonderful 

 number of caterpillars will come tumbling into 

 the sheet. 



For the higher branches, the sheet cannot be 

 used, as the fall would damage the larvae, many of 

 which are peculiarly delicate, and cannot endure 

 rough usage. In these cases, the butterfly-net 

 is useful, being held under the branch with one 

 hand, while the other hand taps the bough with 

 a stick. Sometimes, when the entomologist is 

 obliged to hold a branch with one hand, the net 

 itself can be neatly tapped under the boughs so 

 as to catch the caterpillars as they fall. 



WE now come to some of those remarkable 

 Moths the males of which are winged and 

 beautifully marked, while the females are either 

 wholly or partially wingless. Practically, they 



