iio6 



THE NATURE BOOK 



grower's trouble arises. When the female 

 moth has onee deposited her numerous 

 eggs amongst the leaves of gooseberry or 

 currant bushes, it becomes a difficult task 

 indeed to prevent the foliage of the bushes 

 from being more or less completely stripped 

 later on. 



In ten or eleven days after the eggs are 

 deposited, the little caterpillars emerge, 

 and at this stage are so small that they 

 escape notice. Their feeding at this 

 period does but little harm, and towards 

 the end of August, or early in September, 

 they give up feeding and spin bits of 

 leaves together on the ground beneath the 

 bushes. Later, falling leaves afford them 

 further protection, and so they spend the 

 winter months. 



The fruit-grower has probably failed to 

 observe the advent of his enemy, but it 

 is in the following spring that he detects 

 the mischief that is being done to his 

 trees. Just when the branches are be- 

 coming clothed with new leafage, numer- 

 ous dark-coloured caterpillars may be 



THK ICHNEUMON FLY SEEKING FOR CATERPILLA 

 VICTIMS ON WHICH TO DEPOSIT ITS EGGS. 



seen biting out the hearts of the buds, 

 and should these destructive larvae be 

 neglected at this stage, the branches 

 will often be completely denuded of 

 their leaves, and the fruit crop for that 

 season ruined. 



So ravenously do the caterpillars feed 

 after their winter hibernation that often 

 by the first week in May they are full-fed. 

 Some full-grown larvae are shown on 

 p. 1 107. They are of a cream colour, 

 striped along the sides of their bodies with 

 orange-yellow, and bearing large black 

 spots along the back. Indeed, they are 

 coloured very similarly to the moth which 

 they eventually become. 



Now these contrasting and conspicuous 

 colours play a very important part in the 

 economy of this insect. Both the moth 

 and the caterpillar make no attempt at 

 concealment, but expose themselves boldly 

 before their enemies ; they rely entirely 

 on their gay and conspicuous colouring 

 to warn off their foes. While many in- 

 sect species depend for protection upon 

 a more or less perfect simulation of 

 their surroundings, whereby they 

 become inconspicuous, the Magpie 

 Moth, throughout all the stages in 

 its develoi^ment, takes the contrary 

 course, antl flaunts its colours before 

 the eyes of its enemies, thus making 

 itself as conspicuous as possible. 



Such showy colours are generally 

 associated with nauseous and dis- 

 tasteful properties, and insectivorous 

 animals are consequently warned 

 fiom making an attack upon species 

 so coloured. A frog or a toad, seeing 

 one of these caterpillars in motion, 

 may snap it up greedily, but will 

 quickly reject it again, and nothing 

 will thereafter ])ersuade the frog or 

 toad to touch another similar larva. 

 Probably that first attack was wholly 

 the outcouK' of inexperience. 



This cater])illar is also distasteful 

 to birds, s])i(lers, and other enemies, 

 and being thus enabled to escape 

 from the attacks of some of the 

 most formidable foes that prey upon 

 caterpillar species, it naturally thrives 

 a])ace and often becomes a serious 

 ])^■^t, owing to its destructive work 

 while feeding. 



It happens, however, that when- 



