THE BUTTERFLY 



33 



pillars as foori. Thus of the hundred species of New England 

 butterflies, eight feed upon oaks, eleven upon willows, thirteen 

 upon the rose family, and tw(!nty-eight upon the pea family. 

 It follows from the restricted food of many caterpillars, that 

 the range of the species must often Ije determined by that of 

 its food-plant. 



The imagos fly in the daytime, especially in the sunshine. 

 Certain species are characteristic of the roadside, others of 

 meadows, gardens, or woods, while 

 still others are found flying ever}'- 

 where. Owing to its ordinarily 

 short life, the imago is usually 

 found not far from its larval food- 

 plant, upon which it lays its eggs. 



The Wings of the Butterfly. — 

 The most conspicuous organs of the 

 liutterfl.y are, its wings, and of all 

 insects the butterfl^y has the largest 

 wings. The wings are conspicuous 

 not only on account of their size, 

 but also the Ijrilliant colors which 

 they usually wear. Our common- 

 est butterflies are kno\vn to every 

 lover of the fields owing to their sticking white, yellow, red, 

 and blue colors. While for most animals inconspicuousness 

 seems to he advantageous, butterflies and a considerable num- 

 ber of moths make no effort to hide their colors. The Lepi- 

 doptera stand in the insect world as a tj-pe that has developed 

 organs for the display of color. Of the meaning of the color 

 display of Lepidoptera we have only imperfect knowledge. 

 Many of them are protected from the attack of their natural 



Fig. yii. — Feeding larva. 



