OR BEE-PARASITES. 151 



extended enable their possessor to fly mth consider- 

 able celerity^ and with a rather loud buzzing noise. 

 These wings are attached to the sides of the large 

 metathorax; and in front of them^ upon the meso- 

 thorax, are inserted two curious twisted appendages, 

 the representatives of the anterior wings or elytra. 

 It is from the presence of these curious organs that 

 the name given to the order is derived. 



The female, to whom this elegant and volatile little 

 creature is incessant in his devotions, is as different 

 from her mate in appearance as can well be con- 

 ceived. As already stated she is a soft fleshy mag- 

 got, without the least trace of wings or limbs, and 

 furnished only with a horny anterior extremity, 

 which represents the head and thorax, and is much 

 flatter than the rest of the body, to enable it to be 

 protruded with facility between the segments of the 

 bee^s abdomen. Close to the anterior margin of this 

 horny shield is the aperture of the mouth, but the 

 only traces of the apparatus of jaws, consist in a pair 

 of rudimentary and nearly immoveable organs situated 

 close to the opening, which leads into a rather large 

 intestine, terminating in a blind extremity. Behind 

 the oral aperture on the lower surface of the horny 

 plate is a second larger opening, or transverse slit, 

 which communicates with a second broad canal, and 

 it is through this aperture that the male fecundates 

 the eggs. The latter are seen scattered through the 

 substance of the body of the female ; the young are 

 hatched from them whilst still in this situation, and 

 make their escape by crawling up the canal above 

 mentioned. In their earliest form, just after quitting 

 the egg, the larvae are minute active creatures, fur- 

 nished with six legs, of which the four anterior are 



