466 
jEPIDOPTRR A. 
The green colour would then be very conspicuous on the soil or bark, and 
we find that the upper surface of the body darkens in tint till it, and 
perhaps the whole body becomes brown when the insect has to pupate. 
It then crawls away till it finds a suitable shelter in soil or among fallen 
leaves, etc., where it pupates. As a rule, coarse threads of silk are used 
to form a covering with leaves and debris, or the caterpillar forms a 
chamber in which to pupate ; from the time the caterpillar ceases feeding 
till it actually transforms to the pupa as much as a week may elapse, 
during which the caterpillar is internally and externally preparing for 
the last moult. 
The caterpillars are wholly herbivorous, feeding on the leaves of 
their foodplants which usually embrace a few allied species. They feed 
usually in the morning and evening only. The pupa is a large brown 
object, of two forms, one with an external proboscis sheath (as in 
Herse convolvuli ) the other without (as in Acherontia styx). 
The moths are usually crepuscular, the smaller “ humming bird 
hawks ” being alone seen flying by day. Food is the nectar extracted 
from flowers, the moth hovering before the flower, the long proboscis 
being inserted to suck it out; white flowers that bloom at night attract 
these moths and it is a wonderful sight to watch such plants when large 
numbers of the moths come. Quisqualis indica is a favourite flower, 
being white at night to attract these moths, though it is red by day. 
The moths are extraordinarily swift of flight and very powerful; 
it is possibly due to this that they form so large a proportion of the insect 
fauna of the island of Barbados in the West Indies, a fact not yet recorded 
by any naturalist ; this island is low and wind swept, less than 20 miles 
across and any but a strong flying moth is liable to be blown away by 
the tradewinds, just as large numbers of insects are sometimes blown 
on to the island ; apparently the hawkmoths have been able to remain 
on the island, and they constitute an extraordinarily large proportion 
of the insect fauna. 
The duration of the larval stage is relatively long, the larger species 
requiring two months to become full-grown, the pupal stage then being 
moderately long and the imaginal life shorter. Hibernation takes place 
as a pupa in the soil and no cases of larval or imaginal hibernation are 
known ; equally aestivation is passed as a pupa, unless it be one of the 
species whose food is then available. 
