CHAPTER VIII 



FAMILY LIFE 



In the two preceding chapters we have sought to follow the 

 processes of reproduction and growth among insects ; now 

 we turn to consider the behaviour of the creatures in con- 

 nection wdth these processes. The insect in its final winged 

 condition has as its essential function the perpetuation of its 

 race, and the activities of an adult insect are, to a great 

 degree, obviously concerned with breeding in its various 

 aspects. Pairing of the sexes is a necessary preliminary to 

 the fertilisation of eggs, and the prospective mother must 

 place her eggs in situations suitable for their development 

 if the young are in their turn to grow^ to maturity. Her 

 egg-laying may be her only and sufficient contribution to 

 the welfare of these young, but not a few female insects feed 

 or otherwise tend their offspring after hatching. In some 

 cases the members of a family remain in association for a 

 shorter or a longer period of larval Hfe ; when the association 

 is preserved after the adult condition has been attained, the 

 family may be said to pass into a community and the life 

 of such insects becomes definitely social. 



The pairing of the sexes may naturally be considered 

 first among the various activities concerned with repro- 

 duction and the rearing of the young, and of especial 

 interest are certain aspects of behaviour preHminary to 

 pairing, which may be regarded as comparable, at least in 

 some degree, to the courtship practised by many back- 

 boned animals. Insects have diverse ways of attracting 

 members of their own kind but of the opposite sex. Some 

 of these are clearly simple responses to sense stimulation, 



