302 THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD 



entirely upon other insects, and often attacking those which are bigger and apparently stronger 

 than themselves. The eggs are laid underground, and the grubs, which are entirely subter- 

 ranean in their habits, feed upon decomposing vegetable matter. When fully fed, they burrow 

 still deeper into the ground, and there change into pupae, from w^hich the perfect insects emerge 

 abtiut a fortnight later. In the common English species the body is shining black, and the legs 

 are yellow, while the transparent wings are marked with brown spots, which generally form 

 three broken transverse bands. The insect is about half an inch in length. 



Certain allied insects ha\'c very slender bodies and long legs, and might easil\' be mistaken 

 for "daddy-long-legs " by any one who failed to notice the presence of two pairs of wings. A 

 species found in Southern Europe is reddish yellow in colour, with a brown thorax and yellowish 

 wings. It has a curious habit of suspending itself from a twig b\' its fore legs, and seizing any 

 flying insect which may come within reach with the middle and hinder pairs. 





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.-?> Iff i ' 



rhtlo hv II'. e. Vanda, F.Z.S. 



ADULT FORM OF AXT-LI(;N 



T^te gruh of thii imect /ir>es in small ^i:s in SdnJy p/uces, unii fceJs up-.n the ari:s, f/f., luliich roll dcivn the sloping slices 



Allied to the foregoing is the extraordinary little snow-insect, which makes its appear- 

 ance in mid-winter, and may even be found crawling on the surface of snow. In general 

 appearance it is not unlike a larval grasshopper, with very long, slender legs, and antenna; 

 of about the same length as the body. There is also a well-developed beak. The wings are 

 quite rudinientar_v in the female, while even in the male they are so short as to be perfectly 

 useless for flight. The insect is remarkably active, nevertheless, and possesses the power of 

 leaping, although the hinder thighs are not developed in any great degree. In colour it is 

 metallic green, with the beak, antenna, legs, wings, and ovipositor rusty red. It is not 

 uncommon in the north of England and Scotland. 



Far more generally distributed is the L.\CE\VING-FLY, or G0LDE\-EYE, which may be 

 seen almost anywhere on warm summer evenings flitting slowly to and fro in the twilight. 

 During the daytime it may often be found resting upon fences, or sitting on the leaves of low 



