FIELD BOOK OF INSECTS. 



matter of fact, this household guest probably accompanied 

 our ancestors when they moved into Europe from Asia. 

 It got the name of Croton-bug because it first attracted 

 general attention in New York about the time Croton 

 water was put in. Perhaps the most interesting thing 

 about the species is the way the mother carries around her 

 package of eggs sticking out of the hind end of her body 

 (see Plate XVI). 



Linnaeus is responsible for the geographic 

 Blatta name of this species too, and also of the next 



orientalis ^ ^ ^^ Re wag & SQrt Q Mrs> \ViggS. 



Only the male of the Oriental Roach (Plate XVI) gets 

 functional wings a rather common arrangement among 

 insects and one which does not seem quite fair as it means 

 that the lady must walk when she wishes to establish her 

 family in a new place. Perhaps the "black beetle" (!) 

 did start from the Orient; like most of the roaches which 

 are directly associated with man, it is now cosmopolitan. 



This genus is occasionally brought to our 

 Periplaneta attention by t h e large, trim P. americana 

 (Plate XVI, which also shows an egg-capsule) from the 

 South. Sometimes we see P. australasia, not so elongate 

 and wearing yellow shoulder stripes lengthwise of its 



front wings. 



Those who go afield find species of Isclmoptera under 

 loose bark, independent country folk which never live in 

 towns. In the tropics, there are not only roaches which 

 are much larger than ours but also species which seem more 

 beautiful to us; one such genus is Panclilora (Plate XIX), 

 members of which frequently make the trip north in 

 bunches of bananas. By the way, in addition to eating 

 our food, clothing, etc., roaches help us kill our bedbugs, 

 if we have any. 



One of the favorite attitudes (see Plate XVII) of these 

 creatures is supposed to be devout and has given them the 

 name of "Praying Mantids." I hate to go against 



64 



