434 HISTORY OF ENTOMOLOGY. 
has only distinguished three of them as larger groups 
by appropriate names, — of the majority of the Orders 
of Insects at present admitted. His Coleoptera, Psychce, 
and Diptcra are evidently such. His idea of Hcmiptera 
seems taken solely from the Cicada or Tettix : but the 
manner in which he expresses himself concerning it, as 
having no mouth, but furnished instead with a lingui- 
form organ resembling the proboscis oiDiptera*, proves 
that he regarded it as the type of a distinct group. Since 
he considers the saltatorious Orthoptera as forming such 
a group, it is probable that he included the cursorious 
ones with the Neuroptcra in his majora section of Te- 
traptera ; and the resemblance of many of the Mantidce 
to the Netiroptera is so great, that this mistake would 
not be wonderful. His division of the Diptcra is quite 
artificial. 
How far Aristotle's ideas with regard to genera and 
species attained to any degree of precision, is not easily 
ascertained : in other respects his knowledge of insects 
was more evident. As to their anatomy, he observes 
that their body is usually divided into three primary seg- 
ments, — head, trunk, and abdomen ; that they have an 
intestinal canal, — in some straight and simple, in others 
contorted, — extending from the mouth to the anus; that 
the Orthoptera have a ventricle or gizzard b . He had 
noticed the drums of Cicada, and that the males only 
are vocal. Other instances of the accurate observation 
of this great man might be adduced, but enough has 
been said to justify the above encomiums. His principal 
error was that of equivocal generation. 
■ Hist. Anim. 1. iv. c. 7. " And. 
