COLLECTING AND PRESERVING INSECTS BANKS. 



9 



Fig. 10.— An ear- 

 wig. (From 

 Packard.) 



Odonata. — The dragonflies (fig. 9), "devil's darning needles," 

 "snake doctors," etc., were familiar to every one of us when a child 

 as objects of dread. However, they are perfectly harmless and may 

 be handled without more than a slight pinch from a few of the larger 

 sorts. They have long, slender bodies; long, many- 

 veined wings; biting mouth-parts, and slender, bristly 

 legs. The smaller kinds, called " damselflies, " lay their 

 wings together when at rest. They are predaceous, and 

 catch many mosquitoes and other small Diptera. The 

 larvre and nymphs are ferocious inhabitants of ponds 

 and rivers, provided with extensile mouth-parts that 

 can suddenly reach forward and catch an unsuspecting 

 insect. The adult should be pinned and a slender hog- 

 bristle pushed through the body from head to near the 

 tail to prevent the loss of head, and keep the abdomen 

 from bending downward. Some keep a few specimens 

 of each kind in alcohol. The colors of some are apt to fade soon 

 after death, so that color-notes should be made before killing the 

 specimens. 



ORTHOPTERA. 



The members of this order have biting mouth-parts, and four stiff, 

 many-veined wings. Those of the front pair, called tegmina, are long 



and thickened, and usually 

 overlap at base when at 

 rest. Those of the hind pan- 

 are large and fold up like a 

 fan, and are hidden by the 

 tegmina. The head is large, 

 and the legs rather stout; 

 often the hind pair is en- 

 larged and fitted for jump- 

 ing. The younger stages, 

 except for the absence of 

 wings, resemble the adult, 

 and a number of species 

 never acquires wings, or at 

 least only rudimentary ones. 

 Their food habits vary 

 greatly, according to the 

 groups. There are five dis- 

 tinct sections. 



(1) The Dermaptera (Forficulidre), or the earwigs (fig. 10), differ 

 from the other forms in having a pair of crude, forceps-like append- 

 ages at the tip of the body. The idea that they get into ears is 



Fig. 11.— One of the cockroaches, Blatta orien 

 talis: a, Female; b, male; c, side view; d, young. 



