CHAP. XIV 



CRICKETS 



331 



destitute of ovipositor, and have short antennae, consisting of 

 about ten joints. 



The head is generally very large ; ocelli are present, though 

 usually imperfect ; the extremity of the body bears a pair of 

 r3markably long cerci. The hind tibiae are usually armed with 

 very strong spines ; the first joint of th^ hind tarsus is elongate, 

 ^nd terminates in two spines, between which the small second 

 joint is often almost completely concealed ; the feet are not pro- 

 vided beneath with pads, but only bear remote setae. 



The alar organs are difficult of comprehension, and different 

 opinions prevail as to their morphology. The tegmina are 

 extremely different to the hind wings, and never attain large 

 dimensions, neither do they exhibit any leaf-like or ornamental 

 structures. In the genus Pteroplistus they are formed some- 

 what like the elytra of Coleoptera, and close over the -Jjack of 

 the Insect in a fashion very 

 like that found in beetles. 

 According to Brunner the 

 larger part of the tegmen 

 which, as we have said, 

 reposes flat on the back 

 of the Insect represents 

 merely the anal area, and 

 all the other parts must be 

 sought in the smaller, de- 

 flexed portion of the wing- 

 cover. De Saussure's opinion, 

 to a somewhat different 

 effect, we have already mentioned. The tegmina of the male 

 are extremely different from those of the female, so that it is a 

 matter of mucli difficulty to decide what nervures correspond.^ 



The wing-covers of the male differ from those of the Locustidae, 

 inasmuch as the pair are of similar formation, each bearing a 

 stridulating file on its lower aspect. This file projects somewhat 

 inwards, so that its position is marked on the outer aspect of the 

 wing-cover by a depression. Usually the right tegmen overlaps 

 the other, an arrangement contrary to that which prevails in 

 other Orthoptera. The wings are ample and delicate ; they 

 possess numerous nervures that are not much forked and have a 

 ^ See Pungur, Termes. Fuzetek, 1877, p. 223. 



Fig. 205. Tegmina (sinistral) of the house-cricket. 

 A, male, inner aspect ; B, female, outer 

 aspect : a, inner margin ; b, outer margin ; 

 c, nervure bearing stridulating file. 



