,^g THE CHAIN OF LIFE. 



little likely to have been present where there were scarcely any 

 flowering plants ; but such groups as those of the two-wmged 

 flies, the pLt-bugs and the ants, we might have expected bu 

 for the fact of their being highly specialised forms, and for 

 that reason likely to have appeared lator^ J'? "I's elrl 

 as yet no haustellate or suctorial msects known m this ear y 

 period. Plausible theories of the phylogeny of '"sects a e 

 not wanting ; but they do not well suit the known facts as to 

 their first appearance- and perhaps we may venture without 

 much blame to apply to the insects of the Coal-period the 

 remark made by Wollaston with reference to the nch insect 

 Tna of the isokted rock of St. Helena: "To a mind which. 



( 



Fic. ..9.-AbloniInal part of the larva of a Carboniferous Dragon fly ^LiMluIa 



carbonaria, Scudder), 



like my own, can accept the doctrine of creative acts as not 

 necessity • unphilosophical,' the mysteries [of the existence 

 of these species in an island so remote from other land], how- 

 ever greatfbecome at least conceivable ; but those which are 

 not atle t; do this may, perhaps, succeed .["ff «^^°°;^ 

 special theory of their own, which, even if it does not satisfy 

 all the requirements of the problem, may at least prove 

 convincing to themselves." 



The suctorial insects make their first certain appearance in 

 the Jurassic ; and the magnificent Sphinx Moth m Fig. 130 is 



J One hio^hly specialised Carboniferous insect «'=;;"">' ,|[?;';'!:;i\ """^ 

 Prc^pLml of Bmngniart, a relative of the modern Walkmg-sueks. 



