22 



GENERAL ZOOLOGY 



the portion reappearing either as a short stump or as a 

 smaller appendage, complete except for the absence of one 

 tarsal joint. This walking-stick is a voracious feeder on the 

 leaves of trees ; it has been known to eat a piece of leaf an 

 inch long and a third of an inch wide in an hour. 



Closely related to the walking-sticks are the peculiar East 

 Indian insects known as walking-leaves. In these insects 

 the anterior wings of the female are green and veined like a 



leaf. The people in 

 the countries where 

 they are found be- 

 lieve that these 

 insects are really 

 transformed leaves. 

 The males are en- 

 tirely different from 

 the females, having 

 anterior wings 

 which have no leaf- 

 like appearance. 



Mantids. The 

 ^ mantids are remark- 

 able for the de- 

 velopment of the 

 fore legs, which 

 are unusually large 

 and strong and 

 armed with stout 

 spines. The func- 

 tion of these legs is 



to seize and hold living prey, which consists of other insects. 

 When lying in wait the fore legs are held up in the air, 

 but when an insect comes within reach they are extended 

 with swiftness and precision. The eggs of the mantids are 



FIG. 12. Walking-Stick, x f 



