Made by soldering a hoop of stout brass wire into the top of the ferrule of a fishing rod
Fig. 14
JAR FOR KILLING BUTTERFLIES
A sheet of perforated paper pasted over lumps of cyanide of potash held in place at the bottom by dry sawdust
When the caterpillar within the egg has reached its full development the top of the egg splits off, as if a lid had been lifted, and the little creature crawls out, and generally makes its first meal upon the shell which it has just vacated, thus whetting its appetite for future banquets, treating the shell as a hors d’œuvre. The larvæ of most butterflies and moths feed on vegetable food; but there are some curious species, even of butterflies, which are carnivorous, the caterpillars of which devour mealy bugs and the larvæ of ants. The ant-eating species are found in Africa, Asia, and Australia.
THE PRODUCTION OF SILK
Caterpillars have the remarkable power of producing silk. Silk is a viscous fluid secreted by long glands, which are near the back of the caterpillar, and communicate with a little, tubelike organ near the jaws, called the spinneret, through which the silk is voided, instantly becoming, on contact with the air, a tough elastic fiber. Out of the silk thus secreted the caterpillars of butterflies spin threads, which they lay along the leaves and branches to guide themselves from place to place. From the silk many species weave little shelters, or tents, in which they are protected through the cold of winter. From the same delicate material they fashion the little knobs, buttons, and girdles by which the chrysalids are supported. The larvæ of butterflies do not spin cocoons: this is done only by the caterpillars of moths.
Fig. 15