. The story of hedgerow and pond . und itself—over its back a cocoon ofvery loose, coarse silk, and filled up theloose meshes or openings with a sort ofgummy liquid. And into this stickyliquid it pushed bits of bitten-up barkfrom inside, until it was covered with39 Hedgerow Life a brown sawdust, coarse and rough, andof course the same colour as the rest ofthe bark. In a day or two the gummystuff dried quite hard and firm, and thewhole thing looked just like a roughlump or knot in the bark of the tree. Ihave it still; and I expect that in a fewmonths—for it spends the whole winterand spring in
. The story of hedgerow and pond . und itself—over its back a cocoon ofvery loose, coarse silk, and filled up theloose meshes or openings with a sort ofgummy liquid. And into this stickyliquid it pushed bits of bitten-up barkfrom inside, until it was covered with39 Hedgerow Life a brown sawdust, coarse and rough, andof course the same colour as the rest ofthe bark. In a day or two the gummystuff dried quite hard and firm, and thewhole thing looked just like a roughlump or knot in the bark of the tree. Ihave it still; and I expect that in a fewmonths—for it spends the whole winterand spring in this safe retreat—it willturn into a pale-coloured moth with afluffy body and two beautiful horns likefeathers. Another caterpillar which feeds on thewillow is very large—about four incheslong, and as thick as a mans finger. Itis bright green, with purple stripes onits side, and a horn on its tail. It turnsinto the privet-hawk moth, one of thelargest of our English insects. In thechrysalis state, when it is buried in the40. Hedgerow Life earth, it is peculiar in having a separatesheath or beak for the tongue, whichin the moth is very long and rolled uplike a watch-spring. Others nearly aslarge live also on the willows in eyed-hawk caterpillar is green withwhite stripes, and the poplar-hawkgreen with yellowish stripes, and theyboth bear horns on their tails. Thewillow (and the sallow, which is a formof willow) is such a favourite food forthese large and interesting caterpillarsthat it is worth while searching carefullyfor them at the end of the summer,about August or September. Perhapsthe best way to find them is by shakingthe branches hard over an umbrellaturned upside - down on the groundbeneath. You must shake hard, becausethey can cling on very tightly, and they41 Hedgerow Life dont let go very easily; and theirgreen colour is so like the colour of theleaves that it takes a very practised eyeto find them by only looking for can remember now, when I
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectbirds, booksubjectwat
