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HAPDWICKE : S SCIENCE- GOSSIP. 



[April 1, 1S67. 



de corn and cotton ; den come de leetle fly — cry 

 golly ! how he bite ! Whoop ! whoop ! white man, 

 slap him face, and stamp like mad. He say ' must — 

 quit— oh ! ' He shout louder den ebber, and whop 

 de tother side, ' must— quit— oh ! ' Den behind, 

 den before, dis side, dat side, all de time, ' must — 

 quit — oh ! must — quit — oh ! ' " 



This is by no means a bad derivation. I felt I 

 must — quit — oh ! if 1 did not say it during the 

 memorable short night on the sandy island. 



Scientifically the Mosquito family belong to the 

 order Diptera, family Culicidce, genus CuJex. The 

 species brought from North-west America turned 

 out to be new to science, and was named Culex 

 piiiguis, because it was fatter, rounder, and more obese 

 than any other of its known kindred ; the specific 

 description is appended as a foot-note. We read 

 the following description in Westwood's " Insects," 

 page 509, vol. ii., explanatory of the system 

 by which the fly extracts or sucks up the blood :'— 

 " Taking its station upon an uncovered part of the 

 skin, it lowers its rostrum and pierces the skin by 

 means of its exceedingly slender needle-like lancets, 

 which are barbed at the tips, and, as by degrees it 

 pushes these deeper into the skin, the lower lip or 

 sheath, in which they are enclosed when at rest, 

 becomes more and more elbowed towards the breast, 

 until the whole length of the lancets are introduced 

 into the skin. It is supposed that, at the same 

 time, it instils into the wound a venomous liquid, 

 which, while it enables the blood to flow faster, is 

 the chief cause of the subsequent irritation." Kir by 

 and Spencer give many interesting and curious 

 details relative to the attacks of these insects in 

 various parts of the world. The larva} of the 

 Mosquito are entirely aquatic, very active, swim- 

 ming with great rapidity, frequently diving to the 

 bottom of the water, and again ascending to the 

 surface. 



During this stage of their existence, they undergo 

 several moultings, to assume the pupse form. The 

 pupae take no nourishment, although brisk and 

 active in all their movements. Space does not 

 allow of my describing the beautiful arrangement 

 observable in the respiratory systems of the larvae and 

 pupse, but compels me to skip these interesting 

 details, and to refer only and very briefly in con- 

 clusion to the system adopted by the female to 

 insure the safety of her eggs, and the singular 

 way the mature insect extricates itself from the 

 pupse case. 



Thefemale Mosquito, when thepropertime arrives, 

 selects some quiet eddy in a murmury brook, or the 

 tranquil waters of a lake, buoyed up on a leaf or float- 

 ing spray. She crosses her hind legs and begins build- 

 ing her boat, which, when finished, contains usually 

 over four huudred eggs. The eggs nearest the 

 ends are said to contain the males, those in the 

 middle the females. So admirably is this boat con- 



structed that to upset or sink it, is an impossibility. 

 One would almost be disposed to think the eggs 

 were indestructible : though they remain frozen 

 during the winter, they still retain their vitality un- 

 impaired. Many species do not build boats of their 

 eggs ; one, I may instance as an example, is found 

 in the swamps of the Southern States. The female 

 sinks a hole in the soft mud with the end of her 

 tail, and leaves her suspended eggs in the holes by 

 long slender ropes or stalks. When the larva? come 

 from out the eggs, there is always a sufficiency of 

 water for their sustenance collected at the bottom of 

 the hole, and to support life until the time arrives 

 for the grub to disappear into the mud therein, to 

 undergo its final change. An American writer 

 speaks of a Mosquito that deposits its eggs in the 

 sandy plains of the Carolinas and Georgia : " She 

 selects a spot exposed to the fury of the sun, and 

 drops her eggs among the grains of sand. The 

 larvae, when hatched, must penetrate very deep 

 to obtain moisture. Their proceedings and 

 habits are yet to be tested. All you can see is the 

 mother fly dropping her eggs. Twelve or fifteen 

 days from this time the metamorphosis is complete. 

 ; Place the hillock betwixt you and the sun as he is 

 j setting : the flies ascend in such numbers that you 

 would think it must be smoke from a boiling spring. 

 These are the genuine ' stingers ' and contain more 

 \ venom than ten other tribes amalgamated." 



When the period for the final transformation is at 

 hand, the pupse float on the surface of the wafer, 

 and should the day prove bright and sunny, each 

 pupa case splits, and the little fly with extreme care 

 and deliberation draws out her front legs from their 

 casings. The insect mariner has to be wary now : 

 to tilt on one side is certain death from drowning. 

 ; Her two front legs are next placed on the water 

 j (for be it known, a Mosquito walks easily upon the 

 i water), and the other four bent underneath her body, 

 ! in order to support the boat on an even keel, so to 

 speak ; let the insect but capsize it, and all chance 

 I of righting again is at an end. The wings at this 

 stage of the proceedings are wet and lumpy, and 

 would turn the insect over, boat and all, but for the 

 support afforded by the bent body and the legs held 

 firmly down beneath it ; slowly the crumpled wings 

 separate, the air blows freely through them, and as 

 the gauzy structures dry, so they become additional 

 aids in maintaining her balance. The long, taper 

 body now elongates itself, the fragile wings assume 

 their natural shape, and soon become thoroughly 

 dry. The antennae unfurl like miniature flags, the 

 feathery plumes (if it be a male) float like pennants 

 in the breeze. Lastly, the legs are drawn forth, 

 the body nicely poised, then a few strokes of the 

 wings are given to test their strength and fitness 

 for service. Pausing for a few seconds, probably 

 to admire its own image mirrored in the water, and 

 to fall in love with itself, as did Narcissus of old, 



