444 HOMES WITHOUT HANDS. 



and being nearly as strong as the fibres spun by the common 

 silkworm. 



The caterpillar which works all this damage is rather slender, 

 and is covered with black dots along the back. 



Another weil-known British insect which constructs social 

 habitations is the Gold-tailed Moth (Porthesia chrysorrhoea), a 

 familiar and beautiful insect, with wings of soft downy plumage, 

 and snowy-white in colour, and a tuft of yellow hair at the end 

 of the taiL The perfect insect may often be seen sticking on 

 the trunks of trees in gardens, waiting until the evening, when 

 it will fly off to its labours. 



When the moth has laid its eggs, it plucks off the beautiful 

 yellow tuft at the end of the tail, and with it forms a roof over 

 the pile of eggs, laying the hairs so aitificially as to make a 

 perfect thatch. When the larvae are hatched, they retain their 

 sociability, and spin for themselves a common domicile. This 

 house is very remarkable. Viewed on the exterior, it is seen to 

 be a bag-like structure of whitish silk, rather strong and tough, 

 but very yielding. 



One of these nests, which I found in Wiltshire, is now before 

 me. It was found in a hedge, about two feet from the ground, 

 and is rather a complicated structure. The scaffolding, so to 

 speak, of the nest is formed by a horizontal spray of three small 

 twigs, and it is strengthened by the long hedge-grass which 

 crossed the spray. Seeds of different kinds are woven into the 

 walls, so that a comparatively small portion of the silk is exposed 

 to view. 



When cut open, it shows a singularly beautiful structure 

 within. There are several sheets of silken tissue, each becoming 

 more delicate, and the innermost being wliite, shining like satin ; 

 whereas the outer covering is dull-white, and very tough, cling- 

 ing to the scissors so that a straight cut is almost impossible. 

 Delicate walls divide the interior into several compartments, in 

 all of which are evidences that the caterpillars must have resided 

 for some time. The reason why the creatures make this nest is, 

 that they are hatched towards the end of summer, and in conse- 

 quence are forced to pass the winter in the larval condition, so 

 that some warm residence is needful for them. It is well known 

 that air is a very bad conductor of heat, and, in consequence, the 



