I30 NATURE'S CALENDAR 



June 10 body is composed of rings ; the first ttiree, 



back of the head, correspond to the chest 



of the fully developed insect, and the 

 remainder (nine) to the abdomen ; the 

 skin is thin and loose, and perforated 

 in each ring by a breathing pore. The 

 chest rings have three pairs of stubby 

 " forelegs," which will become the true 

 legs of the butterfly, while the hinder 

 part is usually supported by five other 

 pairs of temporary feet. In the " inch 

 worms," however (the wire-like caterpil- 

 lars of many familiar moths), the feet are 

 placed only at the head and tail, and 

 these larvae hunch themselves along by 

 arching their bodies and measuring their 

 length with each step. 



Caterpillars are soft and juicy, nearly 

 all feeding wholly upon green plants, and 

 therefore they form the most easily di- 

 gested as well as nutritious food for the 

 baby birds, which consume a surprising 

 quantity of them. But nature here, as 

 elsewhere, has so arranged matters that 

 no living shall be had without work, and 

 that no creature shall be left without a 

 fair chance in the world. 



Some caterpillars are aided in their 

 fight for life by the ability co remain hid- 

 den, forcing their enemies to dig them 

 out of their castles ; others conceal them- 

 selves by constructing some sort of a 

 shelter from the weather and from prying 

 eyes ; still others go abroad, but are pro- 



