608 HOMES WITHOUT HANDS. 



•As long as the caterpillar remains in its larval state, and is 

 obliged to feed, it traverses the branches freely, carrying with it 

 the prickly home, and bearing the whole of its weight as it moves. 

 But when the pupal stage has nearly arrived, the nest is suspend- 

 ed to the branch by strong silken threads, and thenceforth re- 

 mains immovable. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 



MISCELLANEA. 



The PoLTZOA and their varied and beautiful Forms. — The Kaft Spidee. — Why so 

 called. — Mode of obtaining Prey. — Mice and their Homes. — The Campagnol or 

 Harvest-mouse. — Its general Habits. — Its winter and summer Nest. — Its Store- 

 house and Provisions. — Entrance to the Nest. — The Wood Mouse and its Nest. 

 — Uses of the Field-mice. — The Domestic Mouse. — Various Nests. — Rapidity 

 of Nest-building. — A Ne^t in a Bottle. — The Cell of the Queen Teemite. — Its 

 Entrances and Exits. — Size of the Inmates. — The Fungus Ant and its singular 

 Home. — Material, Structure, and Size of the Nest. — The Clothes Moths and 

 their various Species. — Habitations of the Clothes Moth, and the Method of For- 

 mation and Enlargement. — The Elk and its winter Home. — The Snow Fortress 

 and its Leaguers. — Its Use, Advantages, and Dangers. — The Albateoss and its 

 Mode of Nesting. — Strange Scenes. — The Edible Svi^allow. — ^ItsMode of Nest- 

 ing. — Origin of its Name. — Description of the Nest. — Curious Legend respecting 

 the Bird. — The Eagle and its Mode of Nesting. — Difficulty of reaching the Eyrie. 

 — The Nightingale and its Nest. — Other ground-building Birds and their tem- 

 porary Homes. — The Noddy. — Perilous Position of the Eggs and Young. — ^The 

 Coot, and its semi-aquatie Nest. 



In this, the concluding chapter, are described sundry habita- 

 tions which can not well be classed in any of the previously men- 

 tioned groups, and which present some peculiarities which render 

 them worthy of a separate notice. 



We will begin with two aquatic habitations, one fixed, and set 

 below the surface of the water, and the other movable and float- 

 ing upon it. 



Any one who is in the habit of frequenting the sea-shore must 

 have observed certain rough, leaf-like objects, which are popu- 

 larly called Sea Mats, one of which is shown, of its natural size, 

 at Fig. 13. These objects are popularly supposed to be sea-weeds, ' 

 and are therefore called Letnon-weeds, because they give forth an 

 odor which somewhat resembles the fragrant oil of the Lemon- 

 peel. Their origin, however, is of an animal and not a vegetable 



