So for ten months I kept some
cases lying on their backs with the feet up and photographed
them in that position. I had to discover for myself that
caterpillars that pupate in the ground change to the moth form with
the feet and legs folded around the under side of the thorax, the
wings wrap over them, and the tongue case bends UNDER and is
fastened between the wings.
For years I could find nothing on the subject of how a moth from a
burrowing caterpillar made its appearance. In two recent works I
find the statement that the pupa cases come to the surface before
the moths leave them, but how the operation is performed is not
described or explained. Pupa cases from earth consist of two
principal parts: the blunt head and thorax covering, and the
ringed abdominal sections. With many feeders there is a long,
fragile tongue shield. The head is rounded and immovable of its
own volition. The abdominal part is in rings that can be turned
and twisted; on the tip are two tiny, needlesharp points, and on
each of three rings of the abdominal shield there are in many
cases a pair of tiny hooks, very slight projections, yet enough
to be of use.
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