THE ATALANTA BUTTERFLY. 295 



its head while eating. It begins with the extremity of 

 the folded leaf, and eats downwards, and, as it gradually 

 consumes its habitation, it retreats backwards, till at last, 

 having, as it were, eaten itself out of house and home, 

 it is forced to abandon its imperfect shelter, and con- 

 struct a new one. This is better than the first ; for the 

 insect has become larger and stronger, and withal more 

 skilful from experience. The sides of the larger leaf selected 

 for its new habitation are drawn together by silken threads, 

 so that the edges of the leaf meet closely and form a light 

 and commodious cavity, which securely shelters and com- 

 pletely conceals the included caterpillar. This in time is 

 eaten like the first, and another is formed in like manner. 

 At length the caterpillar, having eaten up and constructed 

 several dwellings in succession, and changed its skin three or 

 four times, comes to its full size, leaves oft' eating, and seeks 

 a suitable place in which to undergo its transformations. 

 The young caterpillars are almost black ; the full-grown ones 

 measure about one inch and a half, are generally of a brown 

 color more or less dotted with white, with a black head, 

 rough Avith elevated white points, with white branching 

 spines on the back, and on each side there is a row of 

 yeHow crescents. The chrysalis is gray, with a whitish bloom 

 upon it like that on a plum, and the little pointed tubercles 

 on its back are gold-colored. The chrysalis state continues 

 about ten days, or longer if the weather be cool and wet. 

 The butterflies from the first brood appear in July, and from 

 the second in September. 



In the butterflies belonging to the genus Vanessa, the 

 wings are jagged or tailed on the hind edges. The under 

 side of the hind w r ings, in many, is marked with a golden or 

 silvery character in the middle ; the feelers are long, curv- 

 ing, and contiguous, and form a kind of projecting beak. 

 The head of the chrysalis is deeply notched or furnished 

 with two ear-like prominences ; the sides are very angular ; 

 on the middle of the thorax there is a thin projection, in 



