VALUE OF THE ICHNEUMON FLIES. 



397 



establishes the exceeding value of the Pelecini in saving the 

 pine forests from insect destroyers, and shows how wonderfully 

 the balance of Nature is preserved as long as man does not 

 interfere. 



The colour of the insect is shining black, and the wings are 

 generally translucent, though in some specimens a few dark 

 blotches are seen, varying exceedingly in depth of colour, size, 

 and position. The very remarkable hind-legs must not pass 

 unnoticed, the tibia swelling into a pear-like form, and the 

 whole limb being exceedingly long if contrasted with the head 

 and thorax, though short when compared with the abdomen. The 

 name Telecinus literally means " a pelican," and why it should 

 be applied to the insect is more than I can understand. 



One more point must be mentioned. Everything in Nature 

 has its uses. The femalo Megalyra has a long ovipositor 

 because she is needed to lay 

 eggs in deeply hidden larvae. 

 The male performs no such 

 task, and consequently has no 

 ovipositor. In the present in- 

 stance, the greatly elongated 

 abdomen only belongs to the 

 female, that of the male being 

 short and club-shaped. 



As to the typical genus Ich- 

 neumon, it is so vast, and con- 

 tains such multitudes of species, 

 that the mere sight of the crea- 

 tures is enough to make anyone 

 recoil in despair from them. 

 Take, for example, the collec- 

 tion at the British Museum. A 

 positive army of Ichneumons 

 is already arranged, while there 

 are multitudes awaiting their 

 turn for being named and 

 classified. None are large, while some are exceedingly minute 

 — being so small that they are fixed on cardboard, the finest pin 

 being too coarse for their tiny bodies. 



Pig. 193. — Ichneumon arrogator. 

 (Black and yellow.) 



