352 NATURAL HISTORY OF AQUATIC INSECTS CH. 



Since so much depends upon the efficiency of the 

 legs, it is not surprising that the Pond-skaters spend 

 a good deal of time in cleansing and brushing them, 

 often standing meanwhile upon three legs only. They 

 winter as adults, and may be seen darting about on 

 water in cold weather. The larvae are plentiful in 



FIG. 106. i, Velia currens, wingless form ; 2, fore tarsus of do. ; 3, rostrum ; 

 4, 5, lancets ; 6, transverse section of abdomen. 



summer ; they arc to be seen more often than the 

 adults diving beneath the surface. The hinder seg- 

 ments of the larval abdomen are small and retracted, 

 so that at first sight the abdomen seems to be wanting 

 altogether. The Pond-skaters are commonly, if not 

 always dimorphic, the adults being either long-winged 



