44 Trans. Acad. Sci. of St. Louis. 



terial, which soon is converted into the frothy sub- 

 stance. After it has reached the proper consistency 

 under the manipulation of the ovipositor, it passes on 

 into the pile ready to be fashioned into the beginning of 

 the egg-case. During this process the ovipositor is much 

 distended and attains great size; the opening also is 

 very large under this condition. 



The egg-case is begun at the broad, rounded end, and 

 the construction progresses from side to side; each row 

 of cells across the case is completed and the partition re- 

 enforced before the next tier is begun. The ovipositor 

 slowly works into the soft substance until quite a hol- 

 low space is formed; this forms one row of four cells on 

 one side; then it passes on to make the corresponding 

 suite on the other side. The dividing line between the 

 right and left sides of the egg-case is indicated by the 

 braided appearance on top. Evidently the eggs^^ are 

 deposited during this hollowing-out process, and are em- 

 bedded in the soft substance. They undoubtedly leave 

 the body with this material, but never in all of my mantis 

 experience could they be seen even w^ith the closest 

 scrutiny. While burrowing into the substance at the 

 sides the ovipositor goes in more deeply, evidently to 

 shape the lateral galleries. After a suite on each side 

 has been completed some of the substance from the 

 periphery is stretched over it to form a re-enforced par- 

 tition between this and the next row of cells; this is 

 perfected and smoothed by left and right strokes of the 

 ovipositor. The insect then repeats the process, hol- 

 lowing out and partition making until the whole is com- 

 pleted. One tier of cells is always complete, even to the 

 little ribbon-like flap on top which is the door, before the 

 hollowing out of the next tier commences. If the egg- 

 case be large, the mother mantis will sometimes move a 

 short distance downward as the structure grows. How 

 the openings are made at the top during the construction 



1* The eggs are from 2 to 214 mm. in length. 



