INSECTS 



reduced to this extremity by its own feeding, but produced 

 similar conditions for one in a small apple tree by removing 

 all the leaves. This was on May 19, and the caterpillars 

 were mostly in their fifth stage. At seven o'clock in the 



evening the cater- 

 pillars in this col- 

 ony came out as 

 usual, and, after 

 doing the cus- 

 tomary spinning 

 on the tent, 

 started off to get 

 their dinner, sus- 

 pecting nothing 

 till they came to 

 the cut-off ends 

 of the branches. 

 Then they were 

 clearly bewildered 

 — they returned 

 and tried the 

 course over again ; 

 they tried another 

 branch, all the 

 other branches; 

 but all ended 

 alike in bare 

 stumps. Yet there 

 were the accus- 

 tomed trails, and 

 their instincts 

 clearly said that 

 silk paths led to 

 food. So all night 

 the caterpillars hunted for the missing leaves; they went 

 over and over the same courses, but none ventured below 

 the upper part of the trunk. By 3:45 in the morning 



[278] 



Fig. 149. 



Twigs of choke cherry and of apple de- 

 nuded by tent caterpillars 



