STRANGE DWELLINGS . 
1 66 
and the oval objects are the cocoons which are spun by its 
larva. 
The Atlas Moth belongs to the same genus as the emperor 
moth of this country, and is a truly splendid insect, though 
without the beautiful colours which decorate the emperor. 
Creamy white, soft yellow, and pale brown are the chief tints j 
of the Atlas Moth, but they are so beautifully blended, the j 
plumage is of so downy a softness, and the expanse of wing is 
so great, that the Atlas holds its own even amid the more 
vividly coloured lepidoptera of its own country. 
There are many members of this genus scattered over the 
different parts of the earth, the finest and largest specimens J 
being found between the tropics. In all the species the antennae 
of the males are remarkable for their beauty, being deeply 
feathered, and shaped something like a spear-head with a trian- 
gular blade, and in many examples there is a loose mem- j 
bran ous talc-like spot in the middle of the wing. 
The cocoons of the Atlas Moth are made of silken thread, 
much like that of the common silkworm, the cocoon being large | 
in proportion to the size of the moth, and the quantity of silk is I 
necessarily very great. Although the thread is not so fine or i 
glossy as that of the ordinary silkworm, it is strong, smooth, 
and serviceable, and capable of being woven into fabrics of much 
utility. 
We now pass to the second insect represented in the illustra- 
tion. This is the House-builder Moth ( Oiketicus Sandersii ), j 
an insect which is common in many parts of the West Indies, i 
in several places being so plentiful that the sight of its long 
pendent domiciles is anything but pleasant to the proprietor 
of a garden. f 
Out of five species of insects belonging to this singular genus, 
tne present has been selected, because on the whole its habita- 
tion is more remarkable than that of any other species. Some j| 
of them make their nest in a much stiffer form than is depicted 
in the engraving, taking pieces of slender twigs and forming 
them into hollow cylinders, the twigs being laid parallel to each 
