280 



Crorfurp at Natural 



regions ; and it occasionally appears on the 

 British coasts. 



GRASS-FINCH. A genus of Passerine 

 birds. [See POEPHILA.] 



GRASSHOPPER. {A crydium.~) This genus 

 of Orthopterous insects is distinguished from 

 the Crickets by the roof-like position of the 

 wing-covers, which in the crickets fold hori- 

 zontally ; and they are distinguished from 

 the Locusts, by the inferior robustness of the 

 body, and the length and slenderness of the 

 legs and antennas. There are several va- 

 rieties, but it will be sufficient to give an 

 account of the little Grasshopper that breeds 

 in our meadows, and prolongs its shrill 

 music through the summer, in order to elu- 

 cidate the history of all. 



The general colour of the Grasshopper is 

 green, with a line of brown which streaks 

 the back, and two pale lines under the belly 

 and behind the legs. It may be divided 

 into the head, the corselet, and the abdomen : 

 the head is oblong, prone, and may be 

 likened in shape to that of a horse ; the 

 mouth is covered by a kind of buckler, and 

 armed with brownish hooked teeth ; the 

 antennae are long and pointed ; and the eyes 

 are black and prominent. The corselet is 

 elevated, narrow, and armed above and 

 below with two serrated spines ; the back is 

 covered with a strong buckler, to which the 

 muscles of the legs are firmly bound, a_nd 

 round these muscles the vessels of respiration 

 are seen ; the last pair of legs are much 

 longer and stronger than the first two pair, 

 and have muscles extremely well adapted 

 for leaping. There are four wings ; the an- 

 terior ones springing from the second pair 

 of legs, the posterior from the third pair : 

 the hinder wings are much finer and more 

 expansive than the foremost, and are there- 

 fore the principal instruments of flight. 

 The abdomen, which is large, is composed 

 of eight rings, ard terminated by a forked 

 tail covered with a kind of down. Towards 

 the latter end of autumn the female is ob- 

 served to be greatly distended with eggs, and 

 she prepares to deposit her burden. In 

 order to form a proper lodgment for them 

 in the earth, Nature has provided her with 

 an instrument at the end of her body, which 

 she can sheathe and unsheathe at pleasure : 

 with this she pierces the earth to the great- 

 est depths possible ; and into the opening 

 thereby made she drops her eggs one after 

 another. Having thus provided for the 

 continuance of her race, she does not long 

 survive : for, as the winter approaches, she 

 gradually withers, and dies through a total 

 decay. In the mean time the deposited eggs 

 continue unaltered, either by the severity of 

 the season or the delay of spring : they are 

 oval, white, and of a horny consistence, and 

 they contain a viscous transparent fluid. 

 When the vernal sun begins to animate all 

 nature, the eggs feel his benign influence j 

 and, generally in the beginning of May, an 

 insect is produced from each about the size 

 of a flea : these are at first of a whitish 

 colour, but at the end of two or three days 

 they turn black ; and, soon after, to a red- 

 dish brown : from their very origin they 



exhibit the appearance of Grasshoppers 

 without wings, and hop among the grass, as i 

 soon as excluded, with surprising agility, i 

 Having continued above twenty days from 

 its exclusion without the use of its wings, ] 

 which are folded up in its body, at length it i 

 prepares for its emancipation ; and, in order j 

 to make the necessary dispositions for its ' 

 approaching change, it ceases from its grassy 

 food, and finds some convenient shelter 

 where it may be protected from a passing 

 shower. It then exhibits the same laborious j 

 writhings, heavings, and palpitations, which I 

 are perceptible in all other insects during i 

 their metamorphosis ; it struggles hard, in i 

 fact, to free itself from prison. At length, j 

 the skin which covers the head and breast is 

 observed to divide above the neck ; and ere 

 long the little insect extricates itself totally 

 from the old skin, which it leaves adhering 

 to the plant under which the transformation 

 was performed. The Grasshopper, thus dis- 

 engaged from its exterior skin, appears in its 

 perfect form ; but at this period it is ex- 

 tremely feeble, and its body quite soft. It , 

 is now of a greenish white colour, which be- 

 comes more vivid as the moisture on the 

 surface dries up. Still, however, the insect 

 discovers no signs of life, but appears quite 

 spent, and overcome with its exertions. 

 During this time the body continues drying, j 

 and the wings unfolding to their greatest 

 expansion ; and a curious observer may 

 perceive them, fold after fold, opening to the 

 sun, till at last they become longer than the 

 two hinder legs : the body of the insect is 

 also lengthened during this operation, and 

 becomes more beautiful than before. These 

 insects are generally vocal in the middle of 

 summer ; and, about sunset, their notes are 

 much louder than during the heat of the 

 day. The musical organs of the male con- 

 sists of what has been termed a pair of ta- 

 borets. They are formed by a thin and 

 transparent membrane stretched in a strong 

 half-oval frame in the triangular overlapping 

 portion of each wing-cover. During the 

 daytime these insects are silent, and conceal 

 themselves among the leaves of trees ; but 

 at night they quit their lurking-places, and 

 the joyous males begin the tell-tale call with 

 which they enliven their silent mates. This 

 proceeds from the friction of the taboret 

 frames against each other when the wing- 

 covers are opened and shut, and consists of 

 two or three distinct notes almost exactly 

 resembling articulated sounds, and corre- 

 sponding with the number of times that the 

 wing-covers are opened and shut ; aud the 

 notes are repeated, at intervals of a few 

 minutes, for hours together. Though averse 

 to the exertions of flight, and slow in their 

 aerial excursions, particularly when the 

 weather is moist or cool, they are sometimes 

 seen to fly to considerable distances. When 

 roughly handled they bite sharply ; and, in 

 the act of flying, they make a particular 

 noise with their wings. [See LOCUST.] 



GRAYLING. (Thymallus vulgaris.) A 

 fresh- water fish, of the Salmonidce family, in 

 many respects very similar in its habits to j 

 the Trout, delighting in clear rapid streams, | 



