ORDERS OF INSECTS. 225 



LESSON 100. 



Orders of Insects. 



Per'forator, a part of some insects with which they bore various 



substances in order to admit tlieir e^gs. 

 Farina'ceous, mealy, resembling the farina of flowers. 



LiNN^us divided insects into seven orders. His divisions 

 are founded upon the presence or absence of wings, their 

 number, their texture, their arrangement, and the nature of 

 their surface. 1^\\g first order {colcop'tera) has four wings. 

 The upper pair consist of a hard, crustaceous or horny sub- 

 stance, and cover or defend the under pair, which are of a 

 more soft and flexible texture, and are folded beneath them. 

 This is the most numerous and best known kind of insects ; 

 and many of them are very remarkable for the singularity 

 of their forms and the beauty of their colours. The various 

 insects known under the name of beetles and winged bugs 

 are included in this order. 



The second order (Jicmip'tera) has likewise four wings ; 

 but the upper pair is not of so hard a texture as those of the 

 beetle tribe. They are more like fine vellum, and, at their 

 extremities, terminate with a membranous edge, which re- 

 sembles the substance of the under pair. They cover the 

 body horizontally, and do not meet in a straight line or 

 ridge, as they do in the first order. Among them are found 

 the grasshopper and the locust. 



The third order {Icpidop'tera) has four wings and com- 

 prehends the various kinds of moths and butterflies. Their 

 wings are covered with a farinaceous powder, or rather with 

 scales or feathers, disposed in regular rows, nearly in the 

 same manner as tiles are laid upon the roofs of houses. 

 The elegance, the beauty, the variety of colours, exhibited 

 in their wings, are produced by the disposition and tincture 

 of these minute feathers. When the feathers are rubbed 

 off, the wings appear to be nothing more than a naked and 

 often a transparent membrane. 



T\ie fourth ox&er {neurop'tera) hdiS four naked membra- 

 nous wings, which are so interspersed with delicate veins, 

 that they have the appearance of a beautiful net work. They 

 have no sting. Of this order are the various species of 



