338 NATURE SKETCHES IN TEMPERATE AMERICA 



silence, while clinging to a grass stem, he turns his body 

 promptly around to take a more strategic attitude. He then 

 stretches his slender brownish legs upward, alongside the 

 plant, which they closely resemble. If this bit of artifice is 

 not effective in diverting the attention of his foe, he soon tumbles 

 down into the heart of the grass forest, where he now allows 

 his legs to take an indifferent posture. 



A proper conception of the home of the cone-head can only 

 be attained by peering closely into this miniature dense forest 

 of wild timothy. Such perfectly adapted surroundings, full 

 of mysterious shadows and recesses, have many points of interest 

 to insectdom as well as to the naturalist. In the midst of this 

 maze of green and brown stems and leaves, we have come upon 

 the secret of his peculiar, conical-shaped head, which is never 

 fully appreciated morphologically, unless the insect is seen 

 under exactly similar circumstances to those here related. 



On careful ins{)ection he may be seen lying immovable, 

 with his pointed head stuck down among the grass roots, 

 causing the body to assume an e.xact resemblance to a narrow 

 green leaf, while his brownish legs, which are nearly invisible, 

 project in perfect likeness to plant stems. He deftly remains 

 quiet here for several minutes, when, concluding that the 

 danger has passed, he tremblingly stirs his body slightly. If 

 satisfied there is no further danger threatening, he stealthily 

 moves with great caution upward on the grass near to his former 

 perch. Soon afterwards, forgetting the past experience, he 

 again joins in the meadow chorus. 



In the same surrounding we may find the cone-head's mate, 

 presenting quite a difference in certain details of the anatomy; 

 notably, she is provided with a long sword at the end of the 

 body, with which she inserts her eggs between the stems of 

 plants. Owing to this peculiarity, this insect sometimes 

 receives the name of swordbearer, but the scientific name, 

 Conocephalus, refers to the cone-shaped head, and is an appro- 

 priate appellation. In her sphere of life she does not have 

 occasion to audibly express her desires or sentiments, and by 

 reason of this fact she has no special organs of stridulation. 

 The species forming the subject of our sketch is the slender 

 cone-head, Conocephalus attenuatus, or ensiger of some authors. 



