W. Harcourt Bath

“ An allied British species, Fœnus jaculator, is a not uncommon insect found haunting the burrows of Crabronidæ, upon which it is probably parasitic.
Family 24, Chrysididæ.—The Ruby-tailed Wasps, or Golden Wasps, as the Chrysididæ are popularly called, are among the most brilliant of the Hymenoptera, most of the species being either of an intense green, blue, or fiery red.
They are small or moderate-sized insects, which are found on walls or flowers in the full heat of the sun; for, as a rule, the most brilliantly-coloured insects are diurnal in their habits. ”

“ Family 4, Perlidæ.—The Perlidæ, or Stone Flies, are chiefly inhabitants of the temperate regions; they are of small size, and not very numerous in species, about thirty being indigenous to the British Isles.
The larvæ, which are aquatic in their habits, closely resemble the perfect insect in form. Their food consists of other insects and they prey especially upon the larvæ of the Day Flies.
The perfect insects are usually found resting quietly on plants and other objects on the banks of streams. ”

“ The eggs, which are little round or oval bodies like small pearls, are deposited by the female in groups upon the leaves of plants and trees. The larva when fullfed is about half an inch in length. The food consists of plant lice and aphides, and it is thus a very beneficial creature, and should be encouraged by every gardener. The pupa of this insect is enclosed in a cocoon. Between thirty and forty species of lacewing flies are known to occur in our own country. ”

“ The males of most of the species possess the faculty of producing loud chirping sounds, but the means by which this is effected vary in the different families.
Family 4, Achetidæ.—The most familiar British insect belonging to this family is the common House Cricket (Acheta domestica) . Living, as it does, in the immediate vicinity of the fire, it seems to be totally independent of the changes of the seasons, and may usually be found of all ages at all periods of the year. Crickets are particularly abundant in bakehouses, being extremely partial to warmth. ”

“ Of the Gomphidæ only four species inhabit our own country.
Gomphus vulgatissimus is a black insect, nearly two inches long, with yellow bands on the thorax, and a line of the same colour along the back of the abdomen.
Family 2, Agroninæ.—This family contains a number of slender-bodied insects. There are two sub-families.
The Agrionidæ are a very numerous group. The typical form, Agrion puella, which is a beautiful, slender creature, measures about two or two and a half inches in expanse of the wings. The abdomen of the male is banded with azure blue, that of the female being brassy-black. ”

“ Another common British species is Pompilus punctum, which is black in colour.
Family 12, Bombicidæ.—This small family is not represented in Britain, though found in southern Europe. Many of the insects burrow in the sand, scratching a hole with their forefeet like a dog, as observed by Sir S. Saunders in the Ionian Islands. In the daytime they may be seen flying rapidly from flower to flower, and many of them exhale an odour of roses. ”

“ When full grown the larvæ crawl up the stem of some aquatic plant out of the water, and after resting there for a longer or shorter time the skin splits open along the thoracic region, and the perfect insect by degrees struggles out of its investment, and when the wings are dried it starts off to continue the same scene of rapine which has characterised its subterranean existence. ”

“ The locusts have been celebrated from the dawn of history on account of the terrible ravages which they have committed in various parts of the world; and although many different species have made their appearance in our own country at various times, the climate, fortunately, seems unsuitable for them to live in, and they have, therefore, not been known to breed here. ”

“ These insects are generally of a red colour, with black bands and spots.
Several species are very injurious to cultivated plants. One of the most destructive of all is Blissus leucopterus, a black insect with white fore wings, each of which is marked with a large black [70] triangular spot on the outer edge. It measures about an eighth of an inch in length. The young larva is red. In the United States this insect, which abounds to a considerable extent, is called the "Chinch Bug." ”

“ Many other species live on different kinds of plants and trees.
[34]
ORDER NEUROPTERA.
Including the Dragon Flies, Lacewing Flies, Day Flies, Stone Flies, Caddis Flies, and their Allies.
Next to the butterflies and moths, the Neuroptera (or nerve-winged insects) , to which belong the Dragon Flies, Lacewing Flies, Day Flies, Stone Flies, Caddis Flies, and their allies, are undoubtedly the most beautiful members of the insect tribe. Though they cannot compete with the Lepidoptera in point of colouring, it is questionable whether they are not more graceful and elegant in appearance. ”

“ Other species of ant lions are known to occur on the continent of Europe, but none hitherto have been discovered to inhabit this country.
Fig. 44.—Myrmeleon Larva.
Fig. 45.—Nemoptera Coa.
Family 2, Hemerobiidæ.—The second sub-family contains the Lacewing Flies, many representatives of which occur in the British [39] Isles. They are among the most elegant and beautiful of the Neuroptera.
The Golden-eyed Fly (Chrysopa vulgaris) is a very abundant and well-known example, but notwithstanding its great beauty it is capable of emitting a very disagreeable odour when handled. ”

“ It has been said, however, that they also feed largely on plant lice or aphides, which, if true, give them a very redeeming quality.
The female earwig deposits her eggs under a stone in some cavity in the ground often dug out by her own labour.
Unlike most other insects, the female does not perish as soon as she has laid her eggs, but lives to behold her offspring, brooding over them almost like a hen. But it is distressing to learn that if the mother should die she is immediately devoured by her progeny. ”

“ Locusts are known all the world over, in fact, nearly every country has a species peculiar to itself. The most extraordinary accounts are on record of the vastness of the swarms which every now and again invade particular districts. ”

“ The Diptera, or two-winged flies, are among the most numerous orders of insects, but they have been so little studied hitherto that we have but a very imperfect knowledge of them, especially as regards the tropical species. ”

“ Many other species of Tabanidæ, popularly called "Breeze Flies," are plentiful in this country.
Family 18, Leptidæ.—These insects are mostly predatory, though many small species are parasitic on animals and other insects. The larva of Vermilio degeerii lives in sand, and feeds on such [98] insects as fall in its way. Those of the genus Leptis are parasitic on cockchafers and other large beetles. ”

“ The Jigger or Chigoe (Sarcopsylla penetrans) is abundant in the West Indies and in South America. It is sometimes very annoying to travellers, burrowing deeply under the skin. The body of the female is capable of attaining to the dimensions of a pea. ”

“ The Socialia contains a very peculiar group of insects closely allied to the cockroaches in the Orthoptera. They may be considered a connecting link between that order and the Neuroptera. There is only one family. ”

“ Again, a mere collector's province may be exhausted in a few years, whereas the study and observation of Natural History, which are the usual "fruits" of collecting Natural Objects, are practically inexhaustible. ”

“ The best way, therefore, to get rid of the insects is to take proper care in clearing away all the refuse after meals, for if this were not there the crickets could not subsist, and would soon quit the house. They are, however, generally objected to only by weak-nerved people, and do very little harm, if any whatever. It is a question whether they are not very useful in acting as scavengers. ”

“ In many eastern countries locusts are relished as articles of food.
The distinctive character of the insects comprised in this group is found in the structure of the wings. The anterior pair are of a horny or leathery consistence, but always much shorter than the abdomen. The hind wings, on the contrary, are of large size, and are composed of a very delicate membrane. There is only one family.
Fig. 76.—Caloptenus Italicus. Tribe III.—Euplexoptera.
Family 7, Forficulidæ.—The insects of this family present a great uniformity of structure. ”

“ Some of the species provision their nests with beetles and grasshoppers, while [22] others attack bees, and are very mischievous, destroying great numbers.
Family 7, Crabronidæ.—This family includes a considerable number of solitary species of wasps. In colour they are generally black spotted and striped with yellow, but many of them are bright red.
The typical genus Crabro is a very extensive one, including over 150 species, a great proportion of which are inhabitants of Europe, while even Britain possesses more than thirty. ”

“ The Mantidæ, or Praying Insects, are celebrated for their habit of resting on their four hind legs, and with their front legs raised in the air, in what was formerly supposed to be an attitude of devotion, but really in an observant attitude, and on the alert for their prey. ”

“ The number of insects is so large (about 13,000 different kinds are found in our own country alone) that it will be found impossible by any one to collect the whole at once; and to study them all is completely out of the question. ”

“ They are sluggish creatures, and do not readily take to flight.
Family 5, Raphiidæ.—This family contains the curious group of insects called "Snake Flies" or "Camel Flies," which are included by some entomologists in the previous family. They have characteristics, however, which entitle them to be placed apart. They have a rather large head, which is attached to a greatly elongated prothorax by a thinnish neck, so that the head has considerable freedom of motion. The species are not numerous, four kinds only occurring in Britain. ”

“ There is, however, a very wide field for research and discovery open to all who will turn their attention to the other groups, and it is with the intention of encouraging the study of these "Neglected Orders" that we have written the present little handbook. ”

“ Family 18, Cynipidæ.—This family includes most of the gall flies. The number of species is very considerable. Of the great majority the females pierce with their ovipositor the tissues of plants and trees, and there deposit their eggs, from which the larvæ are soon hatched. The irritation caused by this intrusion of a foreign body into the tissues produces the galls which are so commonly met with. ”

“ Migratory habits seem to be strongly developed among the Aphidæ, hence it is we are so suddenly visited by such enormous quantities of the insects during hot weather in the summer time.
In colour the Aphides are generally green, brown, and black, [82] according to the species. Different kinds live on different plants and trees. ”

“ Family 2, Andrenidæ.—All the insects belonging to this family are solitary in their habits. The species are very numerous in this country. Many of them burrow in the ground, while others have been observed to make their nests in bramble stick. They are usually smooth, black insects, very unlike bees in appearance. [20] The females have no apparatus for carrying pollen either on the legs or on the abdomen. ”

“ Family 19, Asilidæ.—The Asilidæ or Hawk Flies are a family of considerable extent, and include many very large and conspicuous insects. They feed on other insects, and are very courageous, sometimes attacking even dragon flies. One of the most common species is Asilus crabroniformis, which is common in the south of England. ”

“ Family 1, Cicadidæ.—These insects are mostly inhabitants of warm climates, and our only British representative of the family (C. anglica) is one of the smaller species, the wings only expanding about an inch and a quarter. Four or five hundred species, however, are known to inhabit the world, and some of them attain to considerable dimensions. ”

“ It burrows in loose soil, and, like the mole, it passes along close beneath the surface of the ground, and often raises a small ridge as it advances. It frequents gardens, especially near the banks of canals, and is also fond of damp meadows and other localities in the vicinity of water.
The eggs to the number of 200 or 300, are deposited in a chamber of considerable dimensions, and enclosed in a sort of cocoon-like envelope. ”

“ These insects closely resemble the previous tribe in general character, to which also the same remarks nearly apply.
They are generally small insects, a length of a quarter of an inch being considerably above the average. They are found commonly in loose earth, under decaying leaves in woods, in moss, under the bark of dead trees, and in rotten stumps. They always prefer damp situations. ”

“ This has been denied by many authors, but we have personally known instances of earwigs entering the ears of persons lying asleep in fields in the summer time. The insect can be driven out immediately by pouring a little oil into the ear. ”