288 The Field Naturalisfs Quarterly Nov. 



insects, and differs from the third order in the very numerous 

 veins or nervures which criss-cross the wings in every direc- 

 tion. The Hymenoptera is the third'order, and is made up of 

 the ants, wasps, bees, ichneumons, sawflies, &c., in which the 

 wings are always transparent, with comparatively few nerv- 

 ures. Lastly, we have to look at the insects in the collection 

 which have no wings at all, and there will probably be very 

 few of these, which is fortunate, since they are the most 

 difficult to place systematically. Their mouth is of primary 

 importance ; if it is biting, the insect is probably one of the 

 female Hymenoptera, whose male possesses well -developed 

 wings ; and if it is suctorial, the chances are in favour of its 

 being a flea, which is generally placed in an aberrant family 

 of Diptera, though by some is thought to constitute a separ- 

 ate order, which has been termed the Siphoniptera. 



Thus most of the insects will fall under one or other of the 

 groups named ; the most prominent characteristics of each 

 we may, for the convenience of the beginner, tabulate as 

 follows : — 



A. Insects bearing four wings. 



a. Fore-wings thickened. Order. 



a. Fore-wings horny ; mouth mandibulate . . Coleoptera. 

 ^. Fore-wings leathery ; mouth suctorial . . . Hemiptera. 



b. Fore-wings membraneous. 



a. Wings clothed with scales Lepidopter.\. 



/3. Wings not clothed with scales. 



1. Nervures of wings very numerous . . . . Neuroptera. 



2. Nervures of wings comparatively few . . HYMENOPTERA. 



B. Insects bearing two wings ; mouth suctorial . . Diptera. 



All these orders contain apterous species (wingless). 



The above, though not intended to be an exhaustive 

 conspectus, will enable the collector to arrange his insects 

 in some order, and more minute details can be found in the 

 works mentioned below. 



Having thus roughly indicated the Great Orders of insects, 

 I will leave you to run your collection down to definite species 

 by the aid of Fowler's ' Coleoptera ' ; Saunders' ' Heteroptera ' 

 and ' Aculeata,' which latter are ants, wasps and bees; 

 Edwards' ' Homoptera ' ; Buckton's ' Aphides,' the plant 

 lice ; and Newstead's ' Coccidae,' which are parts of the 



