412 



TRANSFORMATIONS OF INSECTS. 



and it would appear, according to Savigny, that they correspond 

 with the three thoracic legs of insects which have very different 

 functions, however. 



The Myriapoda are divided into two great orders, which can be 

 distinguished very readily. The " Thousand Legs," which have 

 two pairs of legs to each segment of the body, and antennae with 

 seven joints, constitute the first order, or that of the CJdlognatha ; 

 and the " Hundred Legs," which have one pair of legs to each 

 segment, and also long tapering antennae, with fourteen or more 

 joints, form the second order, or that of the CJiilopoda. 



The CJiilogJiatJia are fond of hiding up under stones, in damp, 

 dark places, and they live upon decaying vegetable matter and 



Segments (Magnified). 

 THE MYRIAPOD. (Jiiliis terrestris.) 



the tender rootlets and buds of plants. They have not very 

 formidable jaws, and the common genus, jfulus, which is to be 

 found everywhere in gardens and fields when the upper soil 

 is disturbed, may be considered the type. The jfulidcu have not 

 really a thousand legs, but several hundred pairs may exist upon 

 the long and cylindrical body, whose twistings and serpentine 

 motions impress observers very unfavourably concerning the habits 

 and intentions of the creature. 



The CJiilopoda, on the contrary, are insects of prey, and chase 

 and kill all sorts of small living things, upon which they feed with 

 their strong jaws. The Scolopendra is the type of this division, 

 and is a very formidable hunter. Its head appears to consist of 

 two parts — one a circular shield-like plate, into which are fixed the 

 antennae and the eyes, and the other a large and strong segment. 



