I/O TRANSFORMATIONS OF INSECTS. 



colour, the fore parts of the body being blackish. The adult insect 

 flies in the month of May. The females, although they are large 

 insects, have a very small ovipositor saw ; but they do not require 

 any other, for, instead of using it upon dense vegetable fibre and 

 hard twigs, they simply incise the stalks of leaves. 



The larvai are of a pretty green colour, and have a black ray 

 down the back ; they do not indulge in the threatening posture of 

 lifting up their tails, but curl themselves up just like a sleeping cat. 



There are some small saw-flies which are well known, and 

 which belong to the Hylotomitcs ; their antennae are slightly 

 swollen, and have from three to seven joints. The genus Hylotoina 

 is the most important, and its species are very common in Europe. 

 They usually have the greater part of the body coloured yellow, 

 and the rest black ; and the common rose saw-fly is a well-known 

 example, and one that is especially hated by rose fanciers. It is 

 to be found in every garden, and its habits can be watched with 

 ease. 



When all is bright and full of sunshine early in the summer 

 morning, and when the rosebuds are longing to open and to 

 display their magnificent colours, then is the time to watch the 

 restless saw-flies that move here and there with great velocity, 

 and rest every now and then on the rose trees. These pretty 

 flies are about one-third of an inch long, and when they fly 

 their wings measure nearly half an inch across. Their bodies 

 are smooth, gleaming, appear highly polished, and have an orange 

 tint, whilst their heads, antennae, and much of the body, are 

 black, as are the ends of the legs and the pieces of the tarsus 

 or foot. These Hylotoince belong to the species Rosea, but at first 

 nothing unusual is observed respecting their habits. After a 

 while the flies become more numerous, and as the day passes on 

 some begin to think of laying their eggs. The females fly to 

 and fro, and soon several may be recognised, for they are 

 crowded and heavy with eggs. The slow-flying saw-fly may be 

 noticed buzzing about the most succulent and healthiest of the 

 roses, and it is so anxious to lay that it cares little for the 

 spectator. It crawls and runs over the leaves and suckers, and 

 looks here and there, and is evidently intently occupied in some 

 important duty. Finally, the saw-fly finds a delicate succulent 



