58 HALF-AN-HOUR AT 



species of Thrips, belonging to the natural order, " Thysanoptera^^ 

 sometimes called " Fhysopoda,^^ from the bladder-like suckers 

 terminating the limbs. It is instructive to watch them walking in 

 the " live-box " ; to see the little soft, rounded swelling terminating 

 each foot placed on the glass, and by pressure dilated to a 

 beautiful round sucker — there is no trace of claws ; the tarsi are 

 two jointed, with indications in the proximal joint of a coalescence 

 of two, if not three elements. To see the parts of the mouth 

 properly, dissection under the simple microscope is required. 

 "The parts of the mouth, although constructed in the mandibu- 

 late and palpigirous forms, unite into a short conical sucker, 

 which does not extend beyond the anterior coxa. The clypeus 

 and labium occupy the anterior part, the latter being linear sub- 

 conical, beneath the base of which arise a pair of horny setiform 

 mandibles, of which the base is dilated into a flattened plate in 

 the spines which I (J. O. W.) have dissected." "The maxillae 

 are flat, elongate-triangular, and pointed at the tip, without any 

 apparent articulations, and with a two or three pointed palpus, 

 arising on the outer edge near the middle." . . " The labium is 

 submembranaceous, and more or less attenuated in front ; in some 

 species the mentum is very distinct, and the labrum is extended 

 in front, between, and of equal length with the palpi," ..." labial 

 palpi very short, and two or three-jointed." (Westwood, loc. cit., 



The ' Thysanoptera ' possess points of great interest in their 

 structure, and may be considered as a link between the ' Neurop- 

 tera,' as 'White Ants,' ' Dragon-flies,' ' Stone-flies,' which are man- 

 dibulate, and the ' Homoptera ' (Sage-flies.' ' Canary-flies,' 

 'Cuckoo-spits,' etc.), which are suctorial. 



" The three (apparent) round holes between the eyes " are the 

 cornea of the three Ocelli. " Cheyletiis eriiditus " is a mite, 

 nearly related to the scarlet-jacketted fellows we see in the garden 

 in the early part of summer, " Trojubidhim holosericeum,^'' I'm not 

 sure that I know the Cheyletus, references to figures and descrip- 

 tions of which will be found under that head in the Micrographic 

 Dictionary, by those who will take the pains to look it up. 



Thrips. — I omitted in the remarks on Thrips to say that at the 

 tail is seated a 4-valved borer, somewhat after the style of that in 

 the " Blunt-headed Frog-hopper," and to express the hope that 

 some of our members in the ensuing season will dissect specimens 

 and show us the parts of the mouth, the feet, as in life, and the 

 ovipositor. 



I know not who placed in the box the remark of Dickens', 

 but I feel sure we ought all to be deeply indebted to him : — " The 

 one serviceable, safe, certain, remunerative, attainable quality in 



