58 



MECHANICAL FUNCTIONS 



156. The eggs are very numerous, and 

 are ananged in rows, as seen by Fig. 43, 

 which is a tranverse section of 42. One 

 of these follicles being sent to Roesel, he 

 observed that a double row of egg-like 

 bodies sprouted up in close contact with 

 each other in a furrow, which divide the egg case longi- 

 tudinally; these little eminences soon became animated, 

 for out of them he perceived the little mantes struggling 

 to escape. As soon as the one has succeeded in freeing 

 itself from the egg, it ran off with the agility of an ant, 

 which it resembled in form and nimbi eness. 



MUSQUITO. 



157. The general appearance and habits of the mus- 

 quito are too well known to need description. It belongs 

 to the order diptera, that is, double-winged, these tribes 

 having only two wings, of which the common house-fly is 

 another example. 



158. The gnat and musquito belong to the same spe- 

 cies, the latter being only a large variety of the former. 

 The larvse of these insects in the wa/m season, are common 

 in all stagnant pools and ditches. Even a small vessel of 

 water, if allowed to stand still, will soon exhibit these 

 little beings diving and swimming about in all directions, 

 generally with their head downward. They are, howev- 

 er, obliged often to rise to the surface to breathe, being 

 furnished with a small cylindrical tube for this purpose. 



159. Changes of the Musquito in the Water. The 

 musquito undergoes several metamorphoses 



before it leaves the water. . The larva, at first, 

 is composed of nine segments, each of which 

 is furnished with a number of fine cilia on both 

 sides, as shown by Fig. 44, which is a magni- 

 fied view of the insect. 



160. After having thrice changed its skin, 

 as it increases in size, it appears in a sort of 

 lenticular, or bean-like form, as shown by Fig. 

 45 In this state it is still capable of moving 

 briskly through the water, in the manner 



Fig. 44. 



