34 
PLANTS AND INSECTS 
run in orchards, are all effective ways of aiding in the destruction of 
the curculio. —Eshell L. Blore . 
SOME CURIOUS FELLOWS TO MEET 
H OW should you like to meet a larva of a tiger-swallowtail butterfly? 
Apparently he has a very watchful countenance, with great, 
big eyes and a mouth that is ready for anything; but just wait until 
he moves and starts to eat, and you will see that it is not his face at all! 
No, this is one of the cases where Mother Nature fools you by giving a 
weak creature a goodlooking defense! The back markings of the tiger- 
swallowtail caterpillar are very prominent, especially when ready to 
go into the chrysalis, and you can scarcely find a more ugly chap' than 
he is at that time. He wiggles and twists at the least suspicion of 
danger, and those “eyes” glare at you furiously. But, as a matter of 
fact, he is not ugly at all; he is simply uneasy, for he is about to molt 
for the final time before going into the chrysalis, and after that he will 
come out a flying creature. His real head is safely hidden from view 
most of the time, except when he is walking about and eating. If you 
place a ruler below the white line that looks so much like a mouth, he 
will remind you of an Indian totem of ancient times. 
All caterpillars are very interesting, if you can stand “crawly” 
things; but there is, perhaps, none better known than the offspring 
of the black swallowtail butterfly. Your great-grandmother used to call 
him the caraway caterpillar, because he has a scent like that of strong 
caraway, and the people of her day used to think this was because he 
ate so many leaves of the caraway plant, and so became steeped in it. 
Today we know that this little chap has a pair of scent organs that 
look like large orange horns, just back of his head, and when he is 
disturbed he thrusts them out and waves them in the air, scenting the 
atmosphere very thoroughly indeed. 
Another good caterpillar to watch is the baby of the sphinx-moth. 
There are several of these moths, and, of course, the' same number of 
species of caterpillars. You have heard of the Sphinx in Egypt, have 
you not? It is a great stone image that sits,and looks straight ahead. 
Well, this caterpillar does a similar act when he is in danger. He 
raises his head and about a third of his body, keeps perfectly still, and 
stays that way until danger has passed. In that way he escapes at- 
