54 SOCIAL HABITATIONS. 
they come across the face, and being nearly as strong as 
the fibres spun by the common silkworm. 
The caterpillar which works all this damage is rather 
slender, and is covered with black dots along the back. 
Another well-known British insect which constructs 
social habitations is the GoLD-TAILED Morn, a familiar and 
beautiful insect, with wings of soft downy plumage, and 
snowy-white in colour, and a tuft of yellow hair at the 
end of the tail. The perfect insect may often be seen 
sticking on the trunks of trees in gardens, waiting until 
the evening, when it will fly off to its labours. 
When the moth has laid its eggs, it plucks off the 
beautiful yellow tuft at the end of the tail, and with it forms 
a roof over the pile of eggs, laying the hairs so artificially 
as to make a perfect thatch. When the larve are 
hatched, they retain their sociability, and spin for them- 
selves a common domicile. This house is very remarkable. 
Viewed on the exterior, it is seen to be a bag-like struc- 
ture of whitish silk, rather strong and tough, but very 
yielding. 
One of these nests, which I found in Wiltshire, is now 
before me. It was found in a hedge, about two feet from 
the ground, and is rather a complicated structure. The 
scaffolding, so to speak, of the nest is formed by a hori- 
zontal spray of three small twigs, and it is strengthened 
by the long hedge-grass which crossed the spray. Seeds 
of different kinds are woven into the walls, so that a 
comparatively small portion of the silk is exposed to 
view. 
When cut open, it shows a singularly beautiful structure 
within. There are several sheets of silken tissue, each 
becoming more delicate, and the innermost being white, 
shining like satin; whereas the outer covering is dull- 
