138 THE STUDY OF INSECTS. 



Family NABID^E (Nab'i-dae). 

 The Damsel-bugs. 



We have called the members of this family the Damsel- 

 bugs for want of a better name, " little girl " being the mean- 

 ing of Coriscus, the scientific name of our most common 

 genus. 



Figure 161 represents a wing-cover of a member of this 

 family, and will illustrate the venation char- 

 acteristic of it, although in some species the 

 wings are usually rudimentary. We have two 

 common members of this family, one blonde 

 and the other black. 



The Blonde Damsel-bug, Corisats ferns (Co-ris'cus fe'rus), 

 is about one-third inch in length, and pale yellow, with nu- 

 merous minute brown dots. This species is widely distrib- 

 uted, both in this country and in Europe. It 

 secretes itself in flowers or among the foliage of 

 various herbaceous plants, and captures small in- 

 sects, upon which it feeds. There are several 

 other species that closely resemble this one. 



The Black Damsel-bug, Coriscus subcoleoptratus FIG. 162. 



/ 1 1 /., \ /T-- \ Coriscus 



(sub-co-le-op-tra tus) (r ig. 102), is very common in subcoieop- 

 the Northern States. It is of a shining jet-black 

 color, with the edge of the abdomen and the legs yellowish. 

 Usually this species has very short, rudimentary wings, but 

 a form with long wings is sometimes found. 



Family PHYMATID^E (Phy-mat'i-dae). 



The A mbitsh-bngs. 



The most common member of this family is Phymata 

 ivoljfii (Phy-ma'ta wolf'i-i) (Fig. 163). It is a greenish 

 insect, with a black band across the broadly expanded 

 abdomen. It conceals itself in flowers, and captures 

 FIG. i6 3 . the insects which come to sip nectar. It is espe- 

 cially abundant among the flowers of the golden-rod. 



