FAMILY v.— LOCUSTS. 103 



eight. The caudal end of the body in the female has four 

 horny appendages, the ovipositor; in the male the ventral 

 pair of appendages is represented by a single plate. 



As mentioned before, the males of manj' species of Acri- 

 didse possess stridulating organs. 



Locusts deposit their eggs in oval or bean-shaped 

 masses covered with a glutinous substance. As this method 

 of laying eggs has been described more in detail when giving 

 the description of our raigatory species it is not necessary 

 to give it here, especially as the life-histories of our locusts 

 are nearly alike. The number of eggs deposited by the dif- 

 ferent species varies greatly, some egg-masses containing 

 from twenty-five or thirty to sixty or more, and as in many 

 cases several such masses are produced by each female, the 

 number of offspring can be quite large. Other species, as 

 the Coral-winged Locust [Hippiscus tuberculatus) deposit 

 all eggs (125 to 130) in one single mass. The different 

 species also select different times and places for this purpose, 

 some digging holes in the fall, others in spring, some select- 

 ing hard gravel, elevated sandy spots, or well traveled 

 roads, while some select soft wood for oviposition. 



This family contains a large number of species, all more 

 or less injurious. Even the non-migrating species seen 

 everywhere during the warmer part of the year are very 

 destructive, and deserve the full attention of the farmer. 

 Yet as a very general rule nothing is done to reduce their 

 number, nor are the}' even considered very injurious, except- 

 ing in seasons of drought, when every blade of grass is de- 

 voured. Damp and moist weather is injurious to most 

 species of locusts, and is undoubtedly the most effectual 

 natural agent to keep them in check. Extreme changes dur- 

 ing winter seem to destroy the vitality of the eggs. 



All young locusts are greedy feeders, and, considering 

 their size, devour immense quantities of food. They molt 

 their skin from three to five times. The winsrs, in form of 

 small wing-pads, appear early and gradually, and become 



