Insects and their world 



and has to spend a period, often of several hours, in expanding and 

 hardening its body and wings. 



If you see a bluebottle, for example, as it emerges from the puparium, 

 it is almost unrecognisable as a fly. The wings are like a piece of 

 crumpled paper, the skin is colourless and soft, and the legs are so 

 feeble that the insect is scarcely able to stand. Gradually the body is 

 inflated to its normal shape, the legs become firmer, and the wings 

 miraculously spread themselves out until they are smooth and shining. 

 Although this expansion may be finished fairly quickly the body is not 

 fully hardened, and has not developed its colours fully imtil at least 

 twenty-four hours after emergence. 



The Division Endopterygota includes beetles, flies, butterflies and 

 moths, bees and wasps, and several smaller Orders (Figs. i8, 30-35, 

 52-57. 59-67). 



The Orders of Insects 



The Divisions that we have just mentioned are interesting to students, 

 but for everyday purposes we usually think of insects as being 'beetles', 

 or 'flies', or 'dragonflies'. A group of this sort is called an Order, and 



I 



I 



Fig. 5. A dragon-fly, Order Odonata 

 8 



