130 PBIVET HAWK-MOTH. 



Yet this is as harmless a creature as lives, and it 

 can injure nothing except the leaves of the plant on 

 which it feeds. The eye-like spots are not eyes at 

 all, but simply markings on the surface of the skin, 

 and the formidable horn at the tail cannot scratch 

 the most delicate skin. 



The creature is in fact simply the caterpillar of a 

 very. beautiful moth, represented in fig. 5, and called 

 the Elephant Hawk-moth — elephant, on account of 

 its long proboscis, and hawk on account of its sharp 

 hawk-like wings and flight. The caterpillar may be 

 found in many places, and especially on the banks of 

 streams, feeding on various plants, such as the willow- 

 herbs. 



Another kind of hawk-moth is much more common 

 than the elephant, and is represented on plate A ; 

 the moth itself at fig. 5, and its caterpillar at fig. 5 a. 



This is called the Privet Hawk-moth, because the 

 caterpillar feeds on the leaves of that shrub. The 

 colours of both moth and caterpillar are very beauti- 

 ful, and not unlike in character. 



The bright leafy green tint of the caterpillar, and 

 the seven rose-coloured stripes on each side, make it 

 a very conspicuous insect, and raise wishes that tints 

 so beautiful could be preserved. But as yet it can- 

 not be done, for even in the most successful specimens 

 the colours fade sadly in a day or two, and after a 

 while there is a determination towards a blackish 

 brown tint that cannot be checked, 



