16 VORACITY OF THE FEMALE MANTIS. 



Fig. 2. — Oral orifice, x 400:/, flagellum. 



,, 3.— Prehensile and trembling organ: /., flagellum; t., tooth; 

 X 960. 



,, 4. — Early stage of self-division, division of the nucleus having 

 taken place, with development of the tail. 



,, 5. — A further stage of development. 



,, 6. — A still further progress towards division. 



,, 7. — Self-division, nearly complete. 



Drawn by A. W. Griffin. 



Zl)c lEycceeive lDoracit\> of tbe female 



riDantie.* 



A FEW days since, I brought a male of Majitis Carolina to a 

 friend who had been keeping a solitary female as a pet. 

 Placing them in the same jar, the male, in alarm, endeavoured 

 to escape. In a few minutes the female succeeded in grasping 

 him. She first bit off his left front tarsus, and consumed the tibia 

 and femur. Next she gnawed out his left eye. At this the male 

 seemed to realise his proximity to one of the opposite sex, and 

 began to make vain endeavours to mate. The female next ate up 

 his right front leg, and then entirely decapitated him, devouring his 

 head and gnawing into his thorax. Not until she had eaten all of 

 his thorax except about three millimetres, did she stop to rest. 

 All this while the male had continued his vain attempts to obtain 

 entrance at the valvules, and he now succeeded, as she voluntarily 

 spread the parts open, and union took place. She remained quiet 

 for four hours, and the remnant ot the male gave occasional signs 

 of life by a movement of one of his remaining tarsi for three hours. 

 The next morning she had entirely rid herself of her spouse, and 

 nothing but his wings remained. 



The female was apparently full-fed when the male was placed 

 with her, and had always been plentifully supplied with food. 



The extraordinary vitality of the species which permits a frag- 

 ment of the male to perform the act of impregnation is necessary on 



* From Science. 



