88 THE HISTORY OF ANIMALS. [B. FT. 



covered with a shell, but its whole body is fleshy ; it is sen- 

 sitive, and seizes upon the hand that touches it, and it holds 

 fast, like the polypus does with its tentacula, so as to make 

 the flesh swell up. It has a central mouth, and lives upon 

 the rock, as well as upon shell-fish, and if any small fish falls 

 in its way, it lays hold of it as with a hand, and if any eat- 

 able thing falls in its way it devours it. 



5. One species is free, and feeds upon anything it meets 

 with, even pectens and echini ; it appears to have no visible 

 excrement, and in this respect it resembles plants. There 

 are two kinds of acalephe, some small and more eatable, 

 others large and hard, such as are found near Chalcis. Dur- 

 ing winter their flesh is compact, wherefore in this season 

 they are caught and eaten ; in summer time they perish, for 

 they become soft; if they are touched they soon melt down, 

 and cannot by any means be taken away. When suffering 

 from heat, they prefer getting under stones. I have now 

 treated of malacia, malacostraca, testacea, and of their exter- 

 nal and internal parts. 



CHAPTER VII. 



1. INSECTS must now be treated of in the same manner. 

 This is a class which contains many forms, and no common 

 name has been given to unite those that are naturally 

 related, as the bee, anthrene, 1 and wasp, and such like ; 

 again, those which have their wings enclosed in a case, as 

 the melolontha, 2 carabus, 3 cantharis, and such like. The 

 common parts of all insects are three the head, the abdo- 

 men, and the third, which is between these, such as in other 

 animals is the breast and back. In many insects this is one, 

 but in the long insects with many legs, the middle parts are 

 equal to the number of segments. 



2. All insects survive being divided, except those which 

 are naturally cold, or soon become so from their small size, 

 so that wasps live after they are cut asunder; either the 

 head or the abdomen will live if united to the thorax, but 

 the head will not live alone. Those which are long, and 

 have many feet, will survive division for a considerable time ; 

 both the extremities are capable of motion, for they walk 

 both upon the part cut off and upon the tail, as that which is 

 called scolopendra. All of them have eyes, but no other 

 ' Wild bee. 2 Chafer. 3 Beetle. 



