216 INSECTS INnJRIOUS TO VEGETATION. 



lace, and eyes of the brilliancy of polished gold, as its generi- 

 cal name implies ; but, notwithstanding its delicacy and beauty, 

 it is extremely disgusting from the offensive odor that it ex- 

 hales. It suspends its eggs, by threads, in clusters beneath 

 the leaves where plant-lice abound. The young, or larva, is a 

 rather long and slender grub, provided with a pair of large 

 curved and sharp teeth (jaius), moving laterally, and each per- 

 forated with a hole through which it sucks the juices of its 

 victims. The havoc it makes is astonishing; for one minute 

 is all the time it requires to kill the largest plant-louse, and 

 suck out the fluid contents of its body. 



The last of the enemies of plant-lice are the maggots or 

 young of various two-winged flies belonging to the genus 

 Syrphus. Many of these flies are black with yellow bands on 

 their bodies. I have often seen them hovering over small trees 

 and other plants, depositing their eggs, which they do on the 

 wing, like the bot-fly, curving their tails beneath the leaves, 

 and fixing here and there an egg, wherever plant-lice are dis- 

 covered. Others lay their eggs near the buds of trees, where 

 the young may find their appropriate nourishment as soon as 

 they are hatched. The young are maggots, which are thick 

 and blunt behind, tapering and pointed before ; their mouths 

 are armed with a triple-pointed dart, with which they pierce 

 their prey, elevate it above their heads, and feast upon its 

 juices at leisure. Though these maggots are totally blind, 

 they are enabled to discover their victims witliout much grop- 

 ing about, in consequence of the provident care of the parent 

 flies, which leave their eggs in the very midst of the sluggish 

 lice, Mr. Kirby says, that, on examining his currant-bushes, 

 which but a week before were infested by myriads of aphides, 

 not one was to be found ; but beneath each leaf were three or 

 four full-fed maggots, surrounded by heaps of the slain, the 

 trophies of their successful warfare. He also says that he has 

 found it very easy to clear a plant or small tree of lice, by 

 placing upon it several larvsB of Coccinella or Syi'phi. 



