THE GRASSHOPPER 



347 



until nearly the entire abdomen is buried. Ovipositing females may 

 frequently be found in October. A frothy matter is first laid down from 

 the cement glands, then the eggs and cement are alternatively deposited 

 until some twenty to thirty-five eggs have been laid. Each individual 

 egg is elongated and slightly curved. The female ordinarily oviposits 

 more than once, averaging from 100 to 150 eggs in all. The eggs are 

 placed side by side in four rows, but standing obliquely to the wall in 

 such a way that all slant upward. Since they are all pushed tightly 

 against the wall of the cylindrical burrow the outside rows must project 

 beyond the two inner rows. In this way a channel filled with frothy 

 matter is left along the tops of the rows. Such a grooved arrangement 

 insures the escape of the young from the lower eggs in case those in the 

 upper ones die or are delayed in hatching. 



"Each egg is covered by two membranes: (1) an outer thin, semi- 



Fig. 227. Calopt'enus Spre'tus. 



Process of acquiring wings : a, Pupa with skin just 

 split on the back ; 6, the imago extending ; c, the imago 

 nearly out ; d, the imago with wings expanded ; e, the imago 

 with all parts perfect, natural size. (After Riley). 



opaque one which under a lens may be seen to be pitted or thrown into 

 ridges, and (2) an inner membrane (chorion) which is smooth and thick, 

 but so translucent that the young insect can be seen through it after 

 development has begun. While the outer covering is easily broken, the 

 inner is very resistant, requiring strong pressure between the fingers to 

 crush it. 



"At hatching time in the spring the struggles of the young locust, 

 together with the swelling of parts within the chorion, burst the latter, 

 generally along the ventral side, and the young locust struggles out of 

 its burrow. Once out, it rests a few minutes, generally lying on one side. 

 The limbs are at first limp and directed backward. The animal is still 

 enveloped in a thin veil or pellicle which has aided it in forcing its way 

 out of the ground. This covering shortly splits along the middle of the 

 back and works off behind. Within an hour the locust takes its natural 

 gray color. The foregoing account applies particularly to the Rocky 

 Mountain locust." 



The young grasshopper (like all exoskeletonous animals), though 

 able to feed immediately when its normal form has been completed, can- 

 not grow until it throws off its outer covering. This ecdysis occurs 



