An hour ago this fuzzy creature nestled snugly in 

 yonder mummy standing in its burrow, and when the 

 twilight steals through the woods it will expand its 

 filmy wings, and later, perhaps, flutter about the even- 

 ing lamp upon our table. It is the pretty oak-moth 

 (Dryotampa senatoria), a common insect known to near- 

 ly all juvenile collectors, but not all of them have seen 

 the little pantomime of the chrysalids beneath the trees. 



The episode affords an illustration of an interesting 

 resource in the lives of many insects whose transforma- 

 tions take place underground. 



The black and yellow striped caterpillars of the Dry- 

 ocampa live in swarms upon the oaks, often completely 

 stripping the boughs of foliage. When full grown 

 at which time they will measure some two inches in 

 length they descend from the trees, and burrow in the 

 ground to the depth of several inches, and within an 



7 



