140 NATURAL HISTORY. 



water, than they cast their skins, and deposit their egg3 

 in a gelatinous mass, resembling two balls of spawn. 

 From these proceed small grubs, which, although able to 

 swim with serpent-like motion, mostly lie hidden in gal- 

 leries, varying from two to three inches in length, formed 

 in the mud of the shore, which also serves them for 

 nourishment. When they have attained to the size of a 

 small finger, they pass into the nympha state, and, easily 

 distinguished by the rudimentary wings, are used as bait 

 by the fly fishers under the name of the shore worm or 

 gray drake. They sometimes remain years in the lame 

 state before the final metamorphosis is completed. 



The Wafer Moths (phrygsena) have long antennae, 

 tile-formed, hairy wings, the hinder pair mostly folded 

 longitudinally. The legs are five-jointed ; they have 

 more than one pair of eyes, one pair of which, placed 

 on foot-stalks, are without the posterior filaments ; the 

 mouth is too minute to be discernible. .The imago pro- 

 ceeds from a larva which respires through branchiae, and 

 forms a cell, in which its transformation is accomplished. 

 The caterpillar-like larvre are very numerous, live in the 

 water ; they envelope themselves with a silky covering, 

 which they plaster outside with all kinds of material, 

 which gives them a very rough and singular appearance, 

 resembling leaves, twigs, roots, etc. : these receptacles 

 are enlarged as the pupa increases in size. They live on 

 the leaves of different water plants, preferring the water 

 ranunculus. Enveloped in this clumsy screen, they, 

 nevertheless, creep over the earth, or climb up plants 

 with ease ; choosing materials, which, lighter than water, 

 they can sink at pleasure. These cells have two open- 

 ings, one at each extremity, which, during the pupa 

 state, are guarded by a kind of silken lattice-work, 



