You will observe that in his remarks about the “open
organs on the side of the abdominal segment,”
Professor Rowley may have settled the ‘ear’
question. I am going to keep sharp watch for
these organs, hereafter. I am led to wonder
if one could close them in some way and detect any
difference in the moth’s sense of hearing after
having done so.
All of us are enthusiasts about these moths with their
modest fore-wings and the gaudy brilliance of the
wonderful ‘after-wings,’ that are so
bright as to give common name to the species.
We are studying them constantly and hope soon to
learn all we care to know of any moths, for our experience
with them is quite limited when compared with other
visitors from the swamp. But think of the poetry
of adding to the long list of birds, animals and insects
that temporarily reside with us, a Sweetheart and a
Bride!
Time cannot be used to tell of making the acquaintance
of this moth until how well worth knowing it is has
been explained. That it is a big birdlike fellow,
with a six inch sweep of wing, is indicated by the
fact that it is named in honour of the giant Polyphemus.
Telea means `the end,’ and as scientists fail
to explain the appropriateness of this, I am at liberty
to indulge a theory of my own. Nature made
this handsome moth last, and as it was the end, surpassed
herself as a finishing touch on creatures that are,
no doubt, her frailest and most exquisite creation.
Polyphemus is rich in shadings of many subdued colours,
that so blend and contrast as to give it no superior
in the family of short-lived lovers of moonlight.
Its front wings are a complicated study of many colours,
for some of which it would be difficult to find a
name. Really, it is the one moth that must be
seen and studied in minutest detail to gain an idea
of its beauty. The nearest I can come to the
general groundwork of the wing is a rich brown-yellow.
The costa is grey, this colour spreading in a widening
line from the base of the wing to more than a quarter
of an inch at the tip, and closely peppered with
black. At the base, the wing is covered with
silky yellow-brown hairs. As if to outline
the extent of these, comes a line of pinkish white,
and then one of rich golden brown, shading into the
prevailing colour.
Close the middle of the length of the wing, and half
an inch from the costa, is a transparent spot like
isinglass, so clear that fine print can be read through
it. This spot is outlined with a canary yellow
band, and that with a narrow, but sharp circle of black.
Then comes a cloudlike rift of golden brown, drifting
from the costa across the wing, but, growing fainter
until it merges with the general colour near the abdomen.
Then half an inch of the yellow-brown colour is peppered
with black, similar to the costa; this grows darker
