750 



INSECTS ABROAD. 



legs." These creatures strike unutterable terror into many minds, 

 the generality of people thinking that they possess venomous 

 stings, while others are almost equally terrified by the legs, 

 which to them are inexpressibly revolting. Why anyone should 

 object to an insect's legs is rather unaccountable. That they 

 .should fear the sting or the jaws is intelligible enough, but that 

 they should fear the legs more than the wings is not so easily 

 understood. 



The present species may perhaps lay claim to being the largest 

 and the handsomest of them all. Its colours are black and 

 yellow, which even extend to the enormously long legs. The 

 mode of flight employed by the insect is very remarkable. 

 Instead of allowing all its legs to dangle beneath it, the creature 

 stretches its two fore-legs in front of it, on the same principle 

 employed by the heron when it stretches out its long neck in 

 flight. This species inhabits Australia. 



The Greek word Ctenoplwra signifies "comb-bearer," and is 

 given to the insects of this genus because the antennae of the 



Fig. 4yU. — Cteiiopliora gaudens. [Female.] 

 (Yellow, tirown, and black.) 



males are becnutifully and deeply toothed. They are gracefully 

 curved, the teeth being inside the curve, so that they look like 

 two delicate plumes. Several species of this genus inhabit 

 England, such, for example, as Ctc7iophora pectinirornis and 

 Ctenoplwra hiwacalatu. 



