THE WAY LIFE BEGINS 17 



the smaller body, and is a better flier than the female. In his 

 plumed antennae are the scent pits upon which he depends 

 to find his mate, often following, for great distances, the odor 

 she exhales. 



The Mating of the Moths 



The mating takes place almost immediately after the 

 female emerges from the cocoon. The sperm cells of the 

 male are discharged directly into the body of the female, and 

 often the mating moths are found with their bodies united. 

 Seeing two of these great creatures with their bodies joined 

 together is a sight to hold the wondering attention of any 

 child, and offeis an excellent opportunity to explain the mean- 

 ing of egg fertilization through the union of the father and 

 mother. 



Hatching and Growth of the Caterpillar 



The eggs are deposited in irregular clusters and fastened 

 firmly to a leaf of the food-plant upon which the young cater- 

 pillar is to feed. Instinctively the winged mothers seek out 

 the proper food-plants for their babies, though they themselves 

 never take any food during their adult life. The eggs hatch 

 in about ten days. If you are watching, you will see the sharp 

 jaws of the baby caterpillar nipping away parts of the shell 

 until the head is free, and the rest of the caterpillar's body is 

 drawn out through the tiny hole. It is always a surprise to 

 see the little black caterpillar looking so unlike the beautiful 

 parents. At first it is quite black and covered over with queer 

 bumps and bristles. All day and all night it does little but 

 eat and grow. At last the skin is too tight and it crawls away 

 to await the time when the outer skin splits down the back. 

 The caterpillar then makes its way out of the tight skin, 

 looking bright and fresh. The full-grown, brilliantly colored, 

 caterpillar is not at all like the bristly, black fellow that came 

 from the egg. It is frequently four inches long and as big 

 around as a man's thumb. The body is now green with a 

 bright blue stripe along the back, while along each side rise 

 a double row of blue tubercles with two rows of yellow ones 



