Sallian Mapolitano, age 9, of Portland, Me., for his question:

How can you tell a moth from a butterfly?

Suppose you were the most glamorous insect in the world. Would you mind being called 01d Scaloy Wings? The scaleywinged‑ones or Lopidoptera, is the name the experts gave to the gorgeous family of moths and butterflies. And they don't mind it at all. For their beautiful colors are made by tiny, tiny scales on their wings, Those little flakes bond and reflect the light into glowing hues and radiant colors.

You arc more likely to find a butterfly on the wing in the daylight. His moth cousin generally comes out only after dark, You can also tell a moth from a butterfly by the way it rests. The moth usually rests with his fuzzy wings out flat. The butterfly folds her wings neatly with tips together over her back,

Now take a close look at the antenna, or foolers, of your insect. The butterfly wears slender antennae ending in small knobs. The moth's antennae are thick and fuzzy. They taper towards the tip and end in points ‑ no knobs.

Most butterflies wear more brilliant colors than the moths. A good many moths are drab in color, though this is not always the rule. The luna moth glows a beautiful greenish white. Her back wings end in a swallowtail shape, like some of the most glamorous of butterflies, Some people consider the night flying luna moth the real beauty of the Lepidoptora family,

Both moths and butterflies begin life as eggs. The butterfly tends to lay a few eggs at a time, The moth tends to bundle several hundred eggs together in a cozy blanket made from scales and fuzz from 'her body.

Both cousins hatch into hungry caterpillars. Unless you are a real expert, you couldn’t toll a moth caterpillar from a butterfly caterpillar. That fat green fellow, for instances may someday be a sphinx moth or a swallowtails butterfly. It takes years of study to tell which caterpillar is which.

The next stage of life for both cousins is the long sloop,, ,And in this$ the pupa stages we can usually tell the moths from the butterflies, The butterfly caterpillar settle down in a hard case called n crzealiso. The moth caterpillar usually spins himself a silken blanket called a cocoon, Each moth and each butterfly has his own style of blanket, just as each egg hatches into its own kind of caterpillar,

Lopidoptera is a good family with which to start an insect collections. As you gather specimen and, better still watch their living habits you will soon learn to tell the moths from the butterflies.