THE SCORPION-FLIES. 209 



distinctly separated (resembling the joints of a scor- 

 pion^ s tail), are of a reddish-yellow colour, as is also 

 the last segment, which is dilated into a semi-oval 

 mass, turned completely back towards the head, and 

 terminated by the small forceps already mentioned. 

 In the female the abdomen, which is stouter than in 

 the male, is gradually attenuated towards the apex, 

 and the last three segments are thinner than the rest, 

 the apical one being furnished with a pair of short 

 filaments, each composed of three joints. 



But it is in the structure of the head that we find 

 one of the most striking characteristics of this curious 

 insect. When viewed from above, the head appears 

 rather small, furnished with a pair of compound eyes 

 of moderate size, and a pair of long filiform antennae, 

 between the bases of which the projections formed by 

 three large ocelli are perceptible ; but when we exa- 

 mine it in front, we find that it is produced into a 

 long, yellowish-brown rostrum, very like the beak of 

 a bird, at the apex of which the mouth, with its man- 

 dibles, maxillse, and other organs, is situated. This 

 form of the head is characteristic of a small tribe of 

 Neuropterous insects, of which the Panorpa communis 

 is the type, and which may be denominated the 

 Panorfina. Besides these peculiarities in the form 

 of the head, these insects generally agree in several 

 other characters, such as the possession of four equal 

 wings, which usually lie flat upon the back during 

 repose, and of long slender legs, terminated by five- 

 jointed tarsi, and furnished with a pair of long spurs 

 at the extremity of each tibia. 



Of the habits and transformations of these insects 

 we know but little. In the perfect state they display 

 considerable agility, and are said to feed upon other 



