Note 4 — Chapter XIII · THE GOLD BEETLES: THEIR FOOD

The furry nature of the game does not put him off; nevertheless, the hairiest of our caterpillars, the so-called Hedgehog,4 with its undulating mane, half-red, half-black, does seem to be too much for the glutton. For days on end it wanders about the cage in the assassins’ society. The Carabi seem to ignore its presence. From time to time, one of them will stop, circumnavigate the hairy creature, examine it and try to dig into the bristling fleece. Rebuffed at once by the long, thick, hairy palisade, he retires without biting to the quick. Proud and unscathed, the caterpillar proceeds upon its way with undulating back.