THE GREAT -WHITE BUTTERFLY. 153 



so that the insect within, unstimulated by the 

 summer warmth, remains in the dormant or pupa 

 state all through the winter, to come forth in the 

 first genial days of May. It is said that very late 

 broods of Caterpillars, not full grown before the 

 cold weather, are able to hybernate in a similar 

 manner ; and it is asserted by several naturalists 

 tbat those Caterpillars of the common White Butter- 

 fly which are destined to outlive the winter are 

 sometimes so completely frozen as to break, when 

 bent, like a strip of glass, and yet recover their 

 usual state with milder weather, without apparently 

 having received any material injury. There are, 

 indeed, many species of the Caterpillars of Moths, 

 the late broods of which live through the winter in 

 a similar manner, and which will be described (if 

 space should permit) in the Chapter devoted to that 

 section of the order Lepidopteru. 



Many young entomologists, in the first season 

 of their experience, have been very much surprised 

 by an apparent metamorphosis in the Caterpillar of 

 the Cabbage White Butterfly, of an entirely different 

 character to that which they naturally expected to 

 take place. This singular phenomenon could hardly 

 take place with Caterpillars hatched within the Vi- 

 varium ; but Ave will imagine that a few have been 



