354 ZOOLOGY 



This group contains a number of well-known moths, such 

 as Zasiocamjpa quercios, the oak egger; Bombyx mori, the silk- 

 worm ; Gnefhocampa processionea, the processional moth ; Cossus 

 ligniperda, the goat moth, etc. 



IV. SPHINGINA. 



The hawk - moths or humming - hird moths are large 

 Lepidoptera with short bodies and long powerful wings. Their 

 flight is swift and sustained, and they fly usually at twilight. 

 The antennae are short and taper to a point. The proboscis is 

 very long, and can suck up honey from the depths of a flower 

 without the insect alighting. The sexes are as a rule aJike. 

 The caterpillars have sixteen legs, and the last segment bears 

 an anal horn or tubercle. They elevate the anterior portion 

 of their body like a Sphinx, and remain for hours in this posi- 

 tion ; as a rule they are brightly coloured, and their skin is 

 smooth. The pupae form rough cocoons of earth underground, 

 and the proboscis is usually free. About 400 species are 

 known, many of which are tropical. 



Sesia apiformis, the clearwing, has transparent wings and 

 a bee-like appearance; Acherontia atropos is the death's-head 

 moth ; Sphinx ligvMri the privet moth. 



V. RHOPALOCERA. 



The butterflies are mostly brightly coloured, and are diurnal 

 in their habits, loving the sun. The majority are easily dis- 

 tinguished from the moths by their clubbed or knobbed 

 antennae. Their body is small, and the abdomen is, relatively 

 to the rest of the body, considerably smaller than in the moths. 

 The legs are slender and often reduced, rendering walking a 

 matter of some difficulty. The wings are held erect when the 

 insect is at rest, and the anterior is never linked to the 

 posterior by a bristle and socket, as is often the case with 

 moths. The caterpillars have sixteen feet, and are naked or 

 hairy, with varying markings and tubercles. They do not 

 form cocoons, but turn into chrysalids with an angular contour; 

 as a rule these are suspended to a twig or stalk by a silken 



