The Life of an Insect: being a history of the changes of insects from the egg to the perfect being.
Science
The Life of an Insect: being a history of the changes of insects from the egg to the perfect being.
Insects
half-an-inch long, and covers, when its wings and antennæ are expanded,
a surface of an inch square. It appears, in fact, almost incredible
that it could ever have been contained within so small a compass.
The cases just related may appear to be really exceptions to the rule
just laid down, as to the non-increase of insects when once emerged
from the pupa; but upon a little consideration it will be found that
the exceptions are more apparent than real. The increase in size is not
really a process of _growth_, but is simply owing to the expansion of
the body of the insect to its due size, only taking place in a sudden
manner by breathing a certain amount of air. The dragon-fly gives
us another instance of a similar enlargement soon after leaving the
pupa-case.
CHAPTER II.
THE STRUCTURE AND ORGANS OF THE IMAGO.
[Illustration: _White Hawthorn Butterfly._]
We must now ask the reader's attention to a very important part of the
history of the insect--the knowledge of its various parts, and their
uses in the insect economy. Men of science would call this the anatomy
and physiology of insects; and if there is a desire felt to know and
retain the proper terms employed by those versed in this science when
they treat of these subjects, it will be well to bear these names in
mind. We may, however, convey some notion of the nature of the studies
called by these names, by the following illustration. Let us take
yonder butterfly as our example, and, arresting it in its zig-zag
career over flowers and fields, let us carefully bring it in-doors,
and there look closely at its various parts and appendages. There we
find two long, delicate, thread-like organs springing from the head;
then we come to the head, with its different organs; farther back is a
separate portion, distinct from the head, and distinct, also, from the
remainder of the body of the insect; at the side of it are the wings;
below are the legs; last of all we bring under our notice the remaining
division of the insect's body, the abdomen. Now if Anatomy stood at our
right hand while we took notice of each part, she would point out all
the peculiarities of its structure, and would tell us of how many other
parts it was made up, and how all were beautifully and wonderfully put
together by the skill of the Great Creator. Further than this, she
would, very probably, strongly insist upon our remembering each part by
a particular name; and, as we may add, since she is particularly fond
of, and learned in, Latin and Greek, we may rest quite assured each
name she communicated to us would be in one or other of these classical
languages; for example, instead of saying the butterfly was one of the
"_scale-winged_" insects, which would be far too homely for her, she
would declare that it belonged to the _Lepidoptera_, which is the same
thing in Greek; and its "head" she would inform us was the "_caput_,"
which is the Latin for that word! This done, her strict duties would be
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