Every bright monarch butterfly or striking luna moth started out in a far subtler form of nature"s mosaic, a humble caterpillar. It is this early stage of life - crafted by natural selection into machines for converting a vast array of plant matter, mostly leaves, into the beautiful adults that have captivated humans for millennia - that this book brings to dazzling light. Unobtrusive as they go about their business, these caterpillars are rarely seen by humans - and are virtually never seen from the perspective presented in this sumptuous volume: photographed in extreme close-ups at a resolution that captures in sharp detail the exquisite colors and features eluding the casual observer.