308 



THE APPLE. 



the tender unfolded petals and embrj'o fruit: 

 but, as tliis is soon exhausted, extend tbeii' 

 ravages to the leaves, the whole of the succulent 

 part of which they demolish, and convert the 

 withering skeletons and stems into habitations. 

 When full grown, they let themselves down to 

 the ground by a thread, which they spin from 

 their mouths, and having buried themselves in 

 the soil, there await theii' transformation. 



One species of moth, the small Ermine Moth 

 {Tinea padello), lays its eggs late in the summer 

 on the small twigs, and cements 

 them firmly to the tree, covering 

 them with a strong orluten. The 

 eggs are hatched the same year, 

 but the grubs remain under cover 

 during the winter. In the spring they issue 

 forth with appetites sharpened by their long 

 abstinence, and immediately eat their way into 

 the substance of the young leaves, mining 

 their course between the upper and under cu- 

 ticle. As soon as they have outgrown the 

 dimensions of their dwelling, they appear al- 

 most simultaneously on the outside of the leaves, 

 and feed together in company under the pro- 

 tection of a common web. till the grub state 

 of their existence is about to terminate, 

 when they draw near together ; each spins for 

 itself a white cocoon, and is converted into a 

 chrysalis. 



]\Iany of these caterpillars become the prey 

 of the Titmouse and various other small birds, 

 wliich require a large supply of food for their 

 young at the season when the caterpillars are 

 most abundant. Ants also prey on them, and 



