CICHORACEjE CICINDELID^E. 



perhaps be accounted for, from the circumstance of 

 several distinct species having been comprehended 

 under the same name, varying in their powers of 

 song: thus a cicada sitting upon a harp was the 

 usual emblem of music, which appears to have had 

 its rise from the following legend. Two rival musi- 

 cians contending upon the harp, a cicada settled upon 

 the instrument of one of the artists, and supplied the 

 place of a broken string, and so secured him the 

 victory ; and in Surinam these insects are also called 

 harpers or lyre-men. By others, however, they have 

 been held in less estimation ; thus Virgil tells us that 

 they burst the very shrubs with their noise. Some 

 of our translators have indeed adopted the very com- 

 mon error, that they were insects of a very different 

 family. Thus Dryden (Georgic iii. p. 510) sings 



When creaking grasshoppers on shrubs complain, 

 although from Virgil's words 



Et cantu querelac rumpent arbusta Cicada, 



Georgic iii. p. 328, 



it is evident that the insects now under consideration 

 were alluded to. In like manner Dr. Shaw tells us, 

 that the " cicada is perpetually dunning our ears with 

 its most excessively shrill and ungrateful noise." 



The curious apparatus with which the females are 

 provided, for enabling them to make slits in the 

 branches of trees for the purpose of depositing their 

 eggs therein, has somewhat the appearance of two 

 long narrow files, pointed at the end, moving with a 

 separate or alternate motion, and supported by a 

 broader back entire piece. This apparatus in the 

 larger species is about half an inch long, and is ordi- 

 narily concealed within the terminal rings of the 

 abdomen on its lower surface. The situations upon 

 the twigs on which the eggs are placed, are easily 

 recognised by the little inequalities upon the surface, 

 placed one after the other. Each hole contains from 

 five to eight eggs. 



The preceding observations have reference to that 

 portion of the Linnaean genus which were termed 

 Mannifera, and comprises the modern family CicadicUe. 

 The divisions established at the expense of the for- 

 mer group (together with that of the Linnsean Fulgorce, 

 which are so intimately allied to the former, that 

 some of the Linnsean cicadae are now placed in 

 the family of which Fulgora is the type) are as fol- 

 lows: 1st, the Cicadidee, having the antennae six or 

 seven-jointed, and the ocelli three in number. This 

 family corresponds with the genus Tettigonia of 

 Fabricius, and comprises only a single genus, for 

 which the Linnsean name cicada has been retained. 

 Latreille, in several of his recent works, proposed 

 several other generic divisions, but they have not 

 been adopted. We possess in England only one 

 species belonging to this family, which has been 

 supposed to be the C. hcematodes, but which Mr. 

 Curtis has figured under the name of C. Anglica. It 

 is met with in the New Forest. 2nd, the Fulgoridee, 

 having the antenna; three-jointed, and inserted close 

 beneath the eyes, with a long terminal bristle ; TWO 

 ocelli ; legs formed for leaping ; no musical drums ; 

 the head is often produced in front into a nose. See 

 FULGORID^:. 3rd, the CermpidtB, having the an- 

 tennae of similar form as in the second family, but 

 inserted between the eyes and the head, which is not 

 rostrated. See CERCOPIDJE. 



CICHORACE.E. See COMPOSITE. 



CICHORIUM (Linnaeus), is the succory of 



43 



English authors ; a common plant, found by the sides 

 of fields and highways, and is sometimes cultivated 

 for sheep food. It has large bright blue flowers, 

 belongs to the class Syngenesia ol Lintneus, and to 

 the natural order Composites. There are several 

 annual species, one of which, a native of India, is the 

 well known salad plant called Endive (for the cultiva- 

 tion of which see ENDIVE), long cultivated in gardens 

 everywhere. In some places on the continent of 

 Europe, the roots of the succory C. intybus, are, 

 when full grown, taken up, cut in small pieces, dried 

 in an oven, and afterwards ground and used instead 

 of coffee. 



CICINDELID.E (Leach). A family of coleo- 

 pterous insects, belonging to the section Pentamera 

 and tribe Adcphaga (Gcodcphaga, see CAIIABIDA:) 

 being placed by modern authors at the head of the 

 Coleoptej-a, from the circumstance of the external lobe 

 of the maxillae being converted into an additional 

 pair of feelers, forming the internal maxillary palpi. 

 The jaws are very powerful and horny, with several 

 strong teeth ; the maxillae are terminated by a move- 

 able spur ; the lower lip is hidden by the chin, and 

 the eyes are very large and prominent ; the legs long 

 and slender, and the wings generally developed. 



This family comprises nearly twenty genera, one 

 only of which is found in England, namely, Cicindela, 

 the remainder being in fact extra European, and 

 consequently very little being known respecting their 

 habits. Of these insects, which, from their ferocious 

 habits, as well as from the spots and markings with 

 which they are ornamented, have obtained the name 

 of tiger beetles, there are only six or seven British 

 species, although the genus comprises more than one 

 hundred and twenty. Of these British species the 

 most common is the C. campestris, an elegant insect, 

 having the body of a fine green colour, with several 

 white spots on the wing covers. Nothing can exceed 

 the metallic brilliancy exhibited by these insects, 

 when on the wing in the hot sunshine. They appear 

 early in the spring (we have seen them flying this 

 morning, April 8th, in the Horticultural Gardens) ; 

 on approaching them they immediately take wing, 

 exposing the upper surface of the abdomen, which is 

 highly polished, and ornamented with the most beau- 

 tiful colours. Their flight is however but of short 

 duration ; they, however, rise again immediately as 

 you again approach them. The great rapidity of 

 their motions, renders escape impossible to any luck- 

 less insect which they may attack. We have noticed 

 that this insect emits a fine rose-like scent. Some 

 of the species seern to make but little use of their 

 wings, as in the British species, C. Gcrmanica. The 

 female of the C. campeslris is distinguished by a small 

 black spot on each elytron, not far from the base, and 

 near to the sutural line. 



The most complete account hitherto published 

 relative to the transformations of these insects, is 

 contained in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles. 

 The larva? reside in cylindric burrows of great depth, 

 which they excavate in sandy situations, at the mouth 

 of which they generally station themselves, the head 

 of the larva occupying the mouth of the burrow. 

 They are about an inch long, rather depressed and 

 narrow, composed of twelve rings exclusive of the 

 head, and the anal segment. The head is furnished, 

 like the perfect insect, with a pair of very powerful 

 hooked jaws ; the legs are six in number, and com- 

 paratively strong. The reader will smile with us at 



