196 



NATURE-STUDY 



clasping. Watch the caterpillar holding on to the edge of 



the leaf. 



Cabbage caterpillars, all caterpillars for that matter, are 



very voracious. Their capacity can be judged by the havoc 



a few can effect in a 

 head of cabbage in 

 the garden. 



The cabbage cat- 

 erpillar moults sev- 

 eral times before 

 reaching full size, 

 and at the final 

 moult it seeks a se- 

 cluded and dry spot, 

 under the clapboard- 

 ing or coping of a 

 house, or under a 

 board or leaf. It 

 first fastens itself to 

 the sheltering sup- 

 port by a tuft of silk 

 at the tail, and also 



Fig. 55. Eggs and Young Caterpillar of Cabbage Butterfly. makcS a sliug of silk 



"■'"'°""™'-'"'""' around the waist. 



Then a remarkable thing takes place. The old caterpillar 

 coat splits and is cast oft". But the insect no longer looks 

 like a caterpillar. It is now a pointed, angular case, 

 called a chrysalis. It remains in this form in a quiescent 

 condition for several weeks, in the summer. In the fall of 

 the year it may continue in this condition longer, and pass 

 the winter as a chrysalis. It is apparently dead or asleep. 



