250 WONDERS OF INSECT LIFE 



that such a common insect should, as a matter of 

 fact, be so little known and understood. Few 

 people, indeed, appear to know it by its proper 

 name, to say nothing of its life and history. In 

 what we are still apt to call " the good old days," 

 the froth in which the larva of the Frog Hopper 

 lives was thought to be the saliva of our perennial 

 friend the Cuckoo. Thus it comes about that the 

 insect also goes by the name of Cuckoo Spit. 

 The larva may be distinguished from the pupa by 

 the absence of rudimentary wings. Once having 

 freed itself from the froth, or the latter having 

 dried up (I know not which happens exactly), 

 the Frog Hopper soon hardens and becomes quite 

 a gay little sprite. Previously we had known 

 him as a very soft greenish-yellow creature, in- 

 capable of any great movement; now he has 

 changed very quickly into a hard little mite, 

 brown and grey in colour. Search for him along 

 the countryside among the grasses, or in the 

 garden upon the rose bushes when he is in the 

 adult stage. You will need the practised eye 

 even then, for he is difficult to locate. Having 

 found him, just touch him, and without any 

 preparation away springs the little wanderer, a 

 distinct " snap " accompanying the performance. 

 He has long hind legs admirably suited for hop- 

 ping, or jumping, or leaping, or whatever other 

 form of acrobatics one chooses to call his feats. 



