Dru Drury

“ In this habitation the little architect passes the winter secure from birds and other enemies. As soon as the cocoon has been completed, the caterpillar sheds its skin, and is transformed into a chrysalis. At first the leaf enveloping the cocoon remains green, but soon changes to a red or brown, when it becomes brittle, and is gradually carried away by the winds and storms of winter, until, finally, nothing remains except the cocoon itself, which is firmly suspended by the silk which once covered the footstalk of the leaf. ”

“ Incredible numbers of small moths, bees, flies with four and two wings, are the daily sacrifices offered to the insatiable appetites of these hungry gluttons; and where they devoured one insect in the water they now destroy a hundred, if the mildness of the season will permit them to range about in quest of them. In rainy weather they seldom or ever move, nor when the wind is very strong and boisterous. ”

“ If the egg is laid on the body of the caterpillar, and not within it, a few days, by the warmth of the sun, ripens it to maturity; and then the young destroyer, directed by nature, eats its passage through the under-side of the egg, and passes into the body of the caterpillar, but if the egg is discharged into its body, it there ripens, unseen, to maturity. In either case, it lives on the substance or juices of its intestines; thriving and increasing in bulk, in a proportion equal to the creature it is doomed to kill. ”

“ If we attentively consider these creatures, either in their caterpillar or complete states, we cannot help concluding them to be a rank of beings of greater benefit and advantage to mankind than they appear to be at first view; for, not to mention their being annual 'ministers of nature,' they are appointed by the great Governor of the universe as grand instruments for assisting to preserve that equilibrium so apparently reigning through the insect world, and which all who have made any progress in the study of natural history unanimously confess. ”

“ Most people, indeed, know that a Caterpillar produces a Butterfly; but thousands of persons do not know that a Caterpillar is a Butterfly in disguise, as Dr. Lister ingeniously observes, [7] and as Swammerdam [8] proved to the great Duke of Tuscany, by stripping off the external skins, and displaying the butterfly concealed beneath them. Many persons are ignorant that plants (even of the most poisonous nature) are the beloved and favourite food of some species of insects, and that what is wholesome and nourishing to one, is pernicious and destructive to another. ”

“ Order, Class, Genus, and Species.
Order, is a general term, applicable to a whole race of animals, whereby they are distinguished from each other, as beasts, birds, fishes, &c. [13]
Class, a term by which insects, as well as other animals, are divided into their respective genera or tribes, as the farinaceous, crustaceous, transparent, &c. [14]
Genus, a term dividing each class, as butterfly, moth, hawk-moth, constitute the farinaceous (Lepidoptera) ; dung-beetle, lady-bird, goat-chaffer, and many others, make up the crustaceous (Coleoptera) ”

“ Like the angel of heaven, they walk steadily forward in the line ordained them, and spare neither magnitude nor beauty, neither the living nor the dead, but sweep away all kinds of animal substances with undeviating rigour and rapacious perseverance. ”

“ Insects may, with great truth, be considered as a rank of beings so wonderful and extraordinary, as to strike with astonishment every observer, if we regard either their structure, powers, or use; and creatures, who, at the same time that they challenge our regard, loudly proclaim the wisdom, goodness, and omnipotence of their great Creator. If their shape and beauty are capable of attracting our notice, their ways of living are no less adapted for exciting our admiration ”

“ The knowledge of the insect kingdom illustrates this observation beyond all possibility of doubt; and the number that may be bred from a single pair, in many species, would exceed all credibility, if it was not to be proved by any person who would take the trouble. The wonderful increase that only two summers would be capable of producing among many of them, if each egg was to yield its respective insect, is amazing. The world itself, in a few years, would be incapable of affording plants sufficient for the nourishment of one single species. ”

“ His pleasures are not chequered by remorse, or damped by despair; his pursuits leave no horrors on the mind, or clash with the duty he owes his Maker, his neighbour, or his prince; his conscience suffers not for the indulgence of his mind, nor has repentance need to stalk behind him with an uplifted arm, for injustice committed on his fellow-creatures; on the contrary, it is for them ultimately his labours are pursued, for them he inquires into the various arcana of nature; every part of the earth is searched for their benefit, and its bowels are torn out and examined for their advantage. ”

“ There are not less than fifteen or twenty species, which find their way into the houses. These are not only to be distinguished by their size, figure, and colour, but by their different properties. Some are near an inch long, from which, to that of being scarce visible to the naked eye, are various sizes. Some are long and slender, others short and thick; some are elegantly shaped and highly polished; while others are, according to vulgar apprehensions, deformed, armed with spines, and covered with bristly or coarse and rough skins. Some species also are black as the deepest jet ”

“ And further, if the contemplation of the works of the Sovereign Architect, tends to promote that serious and attentive state of mind which disposes men to the pursuit of virtue, in order to be happy; and if the knowledge and practice of virtue are the means of supporting the mind through all the difficult passages and rugged paths of life; the naturalist bids as fair to be happy as any of the human race. ”

“ I find it is so; and whether it proceeds from an ill-judged pride, in thinking such minute animals below their notice, or whether it arises from that languor of mind, as well as of body, that generally prevails in warm climates, is a matter of no consequence to mankind: the world is not benefited by their situations, and we must be content to remain in our present ignorance, till Providence shall think proper to give us a second Swammerdam, or Reaumur, &c. and place him in a distant part of the globe, for the advantage of the human race. ”

“ Some sing only in the day, others only in the night, and others again are never silent. Of those which sing only in the night, one small species, about the size of the Gryllus Campestris of Linnæus, sallies out of its retreat early in the evening, making so loud and shrill a chirping that it may he said to pierce the ear ”

“ Every adept is fully acquainted that a female moth, known by the name of the Egger (Phalæna Quercus of Linnæus) , taken into the fields the first day it is hatched, will most certainly (though shut up in a box) allure all the males round the country that are within the sphere of its attraction, and even from a great distance; who will at first fly round the box with wonderful swiftness and eagerness, and afterwards settling thereon will hunt and run about it with the greatest impatience, endeavouring to get at the inclosed female; and all this from the strongest desire of copulation ”

“ The analogy between the colours, the dispositions, and the qualities of insects, may yet be greater, and between insects, and the plants on which they feed, still more useful; for if an insect is found in one part of the world to feed on a plant useful in food, medicine, or manufactures, an insect of a similar appearance, in another part of the world, will in all probability be found to feed on a plant of similar virtues. We do not know but insects may affect, when perfect, to frequent different soils ”

“ To many thousands of persons they afford the means of living with comfort and happiness. Even kings are indebted to them for their grandest garments. Immense fortunes have been procured, by their means, to persons in trade, and the great number of people who daily subsist by manufacturing silk, either by spinning, weaving, or dyeing it, have the greatest reason to thank Providence for the institution of this insect. To the last, the Cochineal (Coccinella Cacti of Linnæus) affords him the power of giving our silks and cloths the most beautiful and lasting colours ”

“ They often fly into persons' faces or bosoms, and their legs being armed with sharp spines, the pricking excites a sudden horror not easily described. In old houses they swarm by myriads, making every part filthy beyond description wherever they harbour, which in the day time is in dark corners, behind all sorts of clothes, in trunks, boxes, and, in short, every place where they can lie concealed. ”

“ The whole country of Africa, within the tropics, is one immense forest, except where the sandy plains are too unsettled to afford a proper footing for vegetation. Wherever any inhabitants settle, they make plantations by cutting down the woods and burning them to fertilize the ground, and never sow two years together on the same spot, but let the trees grow up again for two or three years, by way of fallow, before they attempt to get another crop from it. It is these spots, which Smeathman calls recent plantations, which afford the greatest variety of insects and the easiest obtained. ”

“ It is indeed true, that the number of its votaries, in England, are but few, in proportion to other states, where professorships and societies are established under the patronage and protection of the chief personages: yet if we consider it as affording an inconceivable fund of entertainment to its followers, it is rather to be wondered it is not more encouraged and propagated among us, than that we should find a few who have resolution enough to judge for themselves, and follow a study that is always new and always pleasing. ”

“ I have always made it a rule of my conduct to promote Natural History by every method in my power. My cabinet has therefore been open to all those gentlemen, from whatever part of the world they came, who made Entomology their study. ”

“ To some the task appears too arduous, to others too intricate, and to the generality too trifling; who are apt to look with contempt on every pursuit that does not coincide with their own opinions; nor must we, from vulgar minds, expect any conclusions in its favour: with these, a horse, a dog, or a cock, seem to bound the utmost limits of their gratifications. ”

“ Burmeister lays it down as a rule, that with regard to the differences of the sexes, their whole character may be thus distinguished; viz. that the male displays a preponderance of evolution, and the female a preponderance of involution; and observes, "that some beetles have processes upon the head and thorax, which, like the mandibles, can meet, like tongs, and thus serve as a weapon. This is asserted of Hercules and its large comrades." This opinion as to the uses of these horns can, however, scarcely be maintained, since the number of species in which the horns really meet is very few. ”

“ The Posterior Coxæ are only conspicuously enlarged in some particular species (dung beetles) . There are two of them placed on the sides of the breast next to the abdomen, under the hinder thighs. In some they are placed remote and distinct from it, in others they lie close; being moveable in some, in others they are fixed. The use of these parts we are ignorant of. [19]
The Abdomen consists of a number of annuli or rings, and contains the greatest part of the intestines and other viscera; being united to the trunk, and formed with holes on the sides, through which the insect breathes. ”

“ Anterior wings very dark chocolate, hooked at the tips; having a margin of light hair colour running along the external edges from the tips to the lower corners, through the middle of which runs a narrow black serpentine line like a hair, dividing the margin into two shades, the external one being darkest; near the tips is a black spot like an eye, partly surrounded by a blue iris; a narrow waved line of a light hair colour begins at the anterior edge, about one-third from the tips, and, crossing both the anterior and posterior wings, ends about half an inch below the body. ”

“ Natural history has, certainly, less reason to court the favour of mankind than many other branches of knowlege; as the pursuit of it, either as a science or amusement, is so replete with pleasure, that it is hardly possible to refuse it our approbation and encouragement, so soon as we give ourselves the least time to enquire into its merits ”

“ Thorax golden green. Abdomen black, long, and slender. Legs black, very spinose. Wings reticulated, and of a fine shining brown, somewhat inclining to dark blue, with a remarkable white oval spot near the tips of each, which part is much darker than the rest; but in the males is the same, the wings there being of a deep mazarine blue, almost black, and without the white spots. Drury observes of this insect, that "it is somewhat like one we have in England, but distinctly different, and soon to be discovered by comparing them together." ”

“ The sides of a wall underneath the eaves of a house, is the place often pitched on for this purpose. Thus prompted by nature, and instinctively knowing the necessity of performing this work, they carry a quantity of dirt, and place it against the wall, which they temper and soften with a liquor issuing from their bodies, that renders it sufficiently strong and tenacious, and when dry, is proof against any rains that may happen to get at it. The nest is composed generally of about a dozen cells, that are round, and sufficiently capacious to hold the caterpillar when grown to its full size ”

“ It is a pleasing reflection to consider the great strides natural history is making in this kingdom, as well as in other parts of the world; and the many publications on the various subjects of nature, that have made their appearance within these last three or four years, is a circumstance that must give every man of a liberal mind the greatest satisfaction. We see persons, skilled in natural history, receiving encouragements and reward from men of rank and property, according to their respective abilities. ”

“ All corners of the world are visited by our ships; the remotest shores of Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, are not unknown to our countrymen; but feel the effects of that insatiable thirst for traffic and gain, that animates the present generation. ”