OF HARTING. 353 



trees, he does not require to be told that the almost 

 invisible puncture of the Thrips is the source of all the 

 mischief. The progress of entomological research, 

 and the consequent discovery of new forms of this 

 insect, have naturally led to the subdivision of the 

 original Linnaean genus into several other genera, sub- 

 genera and species, all subsequently grouped together 

 under a distinct order, specially framed for their re- 

 ception. The botanical young lady who is carrying 

 home a bouquet of wild flowers for identification after 

 her morning ramble, is fortunate if, on the occasion, 

 she escapes a very unpleasant sense of irritation on 

 her delicate skin, for which she can assign no reason. 

 The probability is that this annoyance will be one of 

 the results of her devotion to her favourite science, 

 and if a knowledge of the immediate cause of it would 

 afford her any gratification, we can inform her, without 

 a personal interview, that the little black Thrips, 

 which she may see swarming in the corollas of her 

 specimens, is the offender. In a white flower, par- 

 ticularly the Convolvulus sepittm, they are sometimes 

 very conspicuous, although individually they are finer 

 than a hair, and often less than the twelfth of an inch 

 in length. They possess four membranous wings, 

 delicately fringed all round their free margins, and 

 differ from all our hitherto noticed insects in wearing 

 a vesicle on each foot, by means of which it is con- 

 jectured that they are enabled to produce a vacuum 

 at each step in walking or skipping on a smooth 

 surface ; Thrips pliysapus derives its specific name 

 from this character. We have met with several 

 species of the order, but the enumeration of them 

 would scarcely be interesting to the general reader. 



Our next Order* is not an extensive one in point of 

 numbers of species, but it includes some remarkable 

 insects of large size that by superficial observers have 



Order NEUROPTERA From the Greek neuron, a nerve and 

 fteron, a wing. Wings four, all with numerous reticulations. 



Z 



