152 



AN ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY. 



disting-uished by a comparatively small, narrow head with promi- 

 nent eyes, and by a short, very stout, curved, pointed beak, 

 which rests, when not in use, in a little groove between the 

 front legs. The insects are strongly built, with legs usually well 

 developed, and, as they are predaceous, are to be regarded as 



friends. The very small 

 ^^^- ^^3- head and short, slightly 



yc^^j^^^jr^ ^f .. ....^^^ curved, pointed beak, serve 



to distinguish them from 

 the plant-feeding species. 

 They readily puncture the 

 skin of any one handling 

 them carelessly, and the 



Wing of Heteropteron with all the regions <<i •. u • i- i 



named. bite IS exceedmgly pam- 



ful, the poison injected 

 into the wound being intensely irritating, and sometimes causing 

 considerable swelling, with pain lasting for days. One of the 

 species has adapted itself to life in houses, feeding upon flies and 

 bed-bugs. The young have the curious habit of coating them- 

 selves with particles of dust or fibre which conceals them perfectly 

 from casual observation. A similar species, Conorliinus sangui- 

 uigis, nearly an inch in length, is found in houses in the South- 

 ern States, — not to feed on bed-bugs, how-ever, but as a bed-bug 

 itself. It is especially inclined to bite children, and many cases 

 of supposed spider-bites are believed by Dr. Leconte to be really 

 due to this insect. He also states that he has known a patient 

 to suffer from the effects of such a ' ' bug' ' bite for nearly a year. 

 Fortunately, the insects are not very common, their large size 

 and black color, with red markings, making them easily visible 

 and readily destroyable. 



The largest species occurring in the Eastern United States is 

 the so-called "wheel-bug," Prionidus cristatus, and this becomes 

 more common southwardly. It lays its curious, jug-like eggs in 

 hexagonal masses on bark of trees, fences, or any other conven- 

 ient locality, and the adult, which is brown in color, is one of the 

 most readily recognized of our species. The thorax has a semi- 

 circular crest, the edge of which is toothed, so that, viewed from 

 the side, it has somewhat the appearance of a segment of a cir- 

 cular saw. It attacks all sorts of insects, piercing them with its 



