402 NATUKAL HISTORY OF HAWAII. 



people living in the tropics to rid their premises of rats and to keep at respect- 

 ful distances from pet animals that may feed npon them. 



Cockroaches. 



]\Iosquitoes and flies as domestic pests have been mentioned as members 

 of the order Diptera, and have been discussed in another connection. Cock- 

 roaches, of Avhich there are several introduced species, are annoying pests. 

 Two species, the American ^^^ and the Australian ^'-^ cockroach, are both found 

 in houses, most commonly infesting kitchens and pantries, attacking provisions 

 of all kinds besides doing much damage to book bindings in the library. They 

 emit a disgusting smell and are otherwise objectionable to everyone. They 

 resemble one another very closely, but vary in color and appearances as they 

 develop. The American species is about two inches in length, the latter a 

 trifle smaller. 



Bedbugs and Other Bugs. 



The bedbug,^*^ as everyone knows, is a nocturnal insect. It occurs the 

 world over and, therefore, is occasionally found in HaAvaii. It seems that, 

 although it has very rudimentary wings, it has nevertheless been able to keep 

 up with the march of human progress. They haA'e certain characteristics that 

 make them members of the order of true bugs.'^^ In the same order are placed 

 the torpedo-bug,'^- a green-winged, long, pointed leaf-hopper, injurious to 

 mangoes, guava and coffee, and the more attractively-named Hawaiian kiss- 

 ing-bug.-'2 which in reality is the common assassin-bug that first appeared in 

 the islands about 1897. Since then, contrary to the character its local name seems 

 to imply, it has maintained a reputation as a fierce carnivorous bug, feeding 

 among other things, on ladybirds, leaf-hoppers and aphids, without discrim- 

 ination between the beneficial and injurious insects. 



White Axts. 



The termites, more commonly termed white ants,'*^ that at certain seasons 

 fly about in large swarms and at all seasons bore into the timbers of houses, 

 are not ants, nor are they more than remotely related to the true ants. They 

 have been placed by many entomologists, by reason of all four wings being 

 equal in size, form and structure, in a separate order.^^ It is true that they 

 have certain social habits that are similar to the ant's, but their structure is 

 very different, as anyone can see by comparing the two insects. Their com- 

 munities are made up of many individuals that have a definite part of the 

 colony work to do. Each class is fitted by nature with special reference to the 

 task it must perform. Kings, queens, soldiers and workers live together in 

 their many-chambered nests. Their nests are hollowed out of the timbers in 

 which thev carefullv eat out the interior, leaving an outer shell in such a 



f>» Periplaneta americana. ^^ Periplnneta aiistralamcr. ^° Cimex lectularius. ^'^ Hemiptera. 



*- Siphanta acuta. "^ Zelus renardii. ^* Calotermes marginipennis. *s Isoptera. 



