GENERAL ACCOUNT OF BUTTERFLIES 



fly to the particular kind of plant upon which the 

 larva feeds. The eggs may have smooth oval 

 shells ; but often the shells are beautifully ribbed 

 and pitted (Plate III, Fig. i; Plate XXV, 

 Fig. i); sometimes they are ornamented with 

 spines, and frequently they are exquisitely col- 

 ored. 



When the young butterfly emerges from the 

 egg it is what is known as a larva. This is a 

 general term applied to the corresponding stage 

 of all insects that appear under four distinct forms 

 in the course of their development. Usually the 

 larvae of butterflies and moths are called cater- 

 pillars ; both terms are used in the following 

 pages. 



Caterpillars vary greatly in appearance ; but 

 they are long, more or less wormlike in form. 

 This fact has suggested the common names of 

 many species ; thus the cabbage-worm and the 

 tomato-worm are caterpillars ; the former is the 

 larva of a butterfly, the latter develops into a 

 moth. 



There is no characteristic by which we can 

 distinguish the larvae of butterflies from those of 

 moths ; but with a little experience the student 

 can learn to recognize the larvae of our larger 

 and more common butterflies. 

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