INSECT INTRUDERS. 



descending all apparently equally in 

 a great hurry ? 



You may have noticed such, and 

 curiosity may have stimulated you to 

 carry your investigations further to 

 endeavour to find out where these ants 

 were going and what they were going 

 for. At the top of the plant or shrub 

 stem, for in the case of a big tree your 

 curiosity would have perforce to take 

 a rest unless you happen to be a climb- 

 ing enthusiast, you may have found 

 flowers and fruits or leaves and buds 

 only, but you may have noticed that 

 the stem or leaves or fruits were wet 

 and sticky and that clustered round 

 them or on them were tiny green, 

 brown or black insects. These are our 

 friends the Blights or Aphis again 

 with which we made acquaintance in 

 the garden. 



These little insects as we have seen 

 feed on the sweet sugary sap of the tree 

 drawing it in through the proboscis-like 

 138 



