Caterpillars. 183 



soon as the caterpillar is hatched, it begins to secure itself 

 from birds and predatory insects by rolling up the lilac leaf 

 into the form of a gallery, where it may feed in safety. We 

 have repeatedly seen one of them when just escaped from the 

 egg, and only a few lines long, fix several silk threads from 

 one edge of a leaf to the other, or from the edge to the mid- 

 rib; then going to the middle of the space, he shortened 

 the threads by bending them with his feet, and consequently 

 pulled the edges of the leaves into a circular form ; and he 

 retained them in that position by gluing down each thread as 

 he shortened it. In their younger state, those caterpillars 

 seldom roll more than a small portion of the leaf ; but, when 



Another nest of Lilac-leaf Holler. 



farther advanced, they unite the two edges together in their 

 whole extent, with the exception of a small opening at one 

 end, by which an exit may be made in case of need. 



Another species of caterpillar, closely allied to this, rolls 

 up the lilac leaves in a different form, beginning at the end 

 of a leaf, and fixing and pulling its threads till it gets it 

 nearly into the shape of a scroll of parchment. To retain 



