-papular JStctianari) nf &mmatctt Itature. 71 1 



burly of transient squalls, gathering together, 

 and sweeping round in oblique circles, as the 

 fitful gust favours them with an opportunity 

 of rising through the blast, or winging on- 

 wards through the misty darkness of the 

 storm. The ert'ect which this imparts to a 

 tropical landscape at a time when thick 

 clouds are upon the mountains, and all ve- 

 getation is bending beneath the sudden rush 

 of the tempest, as gust gathers louder and 

 louder, is particularly wild and exciting. 

 Ordinarily, however, in the evening, when 

 the sea-breeze is lulling, and the fading day- 

 beam is changing like the hues of the dying 

 dolphin, they delight to congregate, and 

 career at an immense height. At this time 

 they soar so loftily, that they are scarcely 

 discernible as they change their position in 

 wheeling from shade into light, and from 

 light into shade. They seem as if they rose 

 upward to follow the fading daylight, and 

 to revel in the departing sunbeams, as, one 

 alter the other, the varying lines are with- 

 drawn, or irradiate only the upper heavens." 



TURNIP-FLEA. (Haltica nemorum.) 

 The generic description of this small Coleop- 

 terous insect will be found under the article 

 HALTICID.E, which refers to the "flea-bee- 

 tles " generally. The Turnip -flea, or more 

 properly Turnip Flea-beetle, is one of these 

 HALTIC.E, which lays waste our turnip- 

 fields, devouring the seed-leaves of the plants 

 as soon as they appear above the ground, 

 and continuing their ravages upon new crops 

 throughout the summer. It is stated in 

 1 Young's Annals of Agriculture,' that the 

 loss in Devonshire alone, in one season, from 

 the destruction of the turnip crops by this 

 little insect, was estimated at one hundred 

 thousand pounds sterling. We could scarcely 

 believe that so small a creature was apable 

 of causing perceptible injury to vegetation ; 

 but what these beetles want in size, is made 

 up by their numbers and voracity; the extent 

 of the injury is also much increased by the 

 circumstance of their attacking, when young, 

 many vegetables, and not gnawing the young 

 leaves, like most other insects, only on the 

 edge, but eating their surface, piercing them 

 like a sieve, and disturbing the cellular 

 tissue ; thus preventing their growth, and 

 finally causing the total destruction of the 

 plant. 



The ravages of the Turnip Fiea-bcetle 

 have naturally attracted great attention, 

 and have caused many and various experi- 

 ments to be tried with a view of checking 

 them. The chief object of the farmer should 

 be to accelerate as much as possible the 

 growth of the turnip as soon as it appears 

 above ground, and to keep the insects from 

 the crop until the plants are in the rough 

 leaf, when they are secure from danger. 

 Many practical men consider that the cr.re- 

 ful and systematic use of lime will, in a great 

 degree, obviate the evil, and indeed there is 

 good reason to expect that it will effectually 

 protect plants from the various kinds of flea- 

 beetles, if dusted over them, when wet with 

 dew, in proper season. Watering plants with 

 alkaline solutions, it is said, will kill the 

 insects without injuring the plants. The 



solution may le made by dissolving one 

 pound of hard soap in twelve gallons of the 

 soap-suds left after washing. Kr.llar very 

 highly recommends watering the leaves of 

 plants with an infusion of wormwood, which 

 prevents the flea-beetles from touching them. 

 Sprinkling with road-dust also, while the 

 young plants are still wet with dew, is also 

 strongly recommended. 



TUKNIX. A genus of Gallinaceous birds 

 closely allied to the Quails, containing 

 several species, one of which ( T. A ndaJusica), 

 the Andalusian Quail, has been shot in 

 this country ; to which it is a very rare and 

 stray visitor. 



TURNSTONE. (Strepstlcu interpret.) A 

 small Grallutorial bird, met with in almost 

 every part both of the northern and southern 

 hemispheres. They reside on the sea shores, 

 and on the gravelly borders of lakes and 

 rivers ; are most abundant in the northern 

 parts of Europe, less frequent in the ternpe- 

 rate regions, and extremely rare to the south. 

 The Turnstones have a short bill, thick at 

 the base, and narrowing gradually to the 

 point ; and with this they turn over the 

 stones on the sea-shore, in quest of the small 

 molluscous and crustaceous animals on 

 which they feed. They breed in high lati- 

 tudes, and migrate towards the tropics for 

 the winter season ; visiting our shores in 

 August, and departing towards the north in 

 the spring. They lay four eggs of an olive 

 colour, spotted with black. 



TURRILITES. A genus of fossil shells, 

 occurring only in the chalk marl. They 

 are spiral and turreted ; whorls contiguous 

 and apparent ; septa sinuous and lubate, 

 perforated by a siphon ; aperture rounded, 

 with the outer lip expanded. 



TURRITELLA. A genUs of Mollusca, 

 the shell of which is very long, and pointed 

 at the apex, with numerous whorls, usually 

 transversely striped ; aperture round ; lips 

 thin, and disunited at the upper port ; oper- 

 culum horny. The animal is furnished with 

 two long tcntacula, with eyes at the base. 

 The shells of this genus are all marine, and 

 many of the species found in the Eastern 

 seas attain a very large size, but none are 

 known to possess vertical ribs or thickened 

 bands. There are about a dozen 

 recent, and as many fossil. 



TURTLE. (Chelonia.) The Marine Tor- 

 toises, or Turtles (Cfiehmula:), as they are 

 usually called, differ from the Tentitudinata, 

 or Land Tortoises, in many essential points, 

 although their exterior, like that of the latter, 

 is composed of a strong bony covering or 

 shield, in which are imbedded the ribs, and 

 which is coated externally by hard horny 

 plates. Their distinguishing characteristics 

 are the compressed and paddle-like form of 

 the feet, particularly the anterior pair, which 

 they use as oars, and by their means can move 

 through the water in any direction, with 

 considerable rapidity. Their progression on ', 

 land is however, by this conformation, ren- ' 

 dered much more difficult, so that it is only 

 with laborious efforts they are enabled to 



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