CHAPTER XVII. 



WSAT ARE 

 INSECTS 



Ijnsect Enemies. 



Man has some competition for the world's supply 

 of org'anlc food. He must overcome his insect compet- 

 itors. 



Insects are small animals which, have six 

 legs ; bodies often almost cut in two and made up 

 of segments or rings ; heads with feelers and two 

 to half a dozen eyes ; mouth parts for cheAving, 

 sucking or lapping their food. To those who 

 have not studied the scientific classification, all 

 insects are hugs and to the popular mind, prac- 

 tically all bugs are bad. Insects eat the same 

 kind of foods that are necessary to other animals 

 and man. There are a few which are useful to 

 the farmers. Honey bees are the most intelli- 

 gent of all livestock, for they live in organized 

 communities and not only gather the raw mate- 

 rial but manufacture it into a finished prod- 

 uct ready for the use of man. Some insects aid 

 the farmer by destroying other kinds which do 

 damage to his crops. These are called predace- 

 ous or parasitic, as the case may be, and such 

 friends should be fostered. Some of the useful 

 ones are the ground beetles, tiger beetles, lady- 

 birds, ant-lions, aphis-lions, mosquito hawks and 

 parasitic insects, which destroy countless num- 

 bers that would otherwise eat our crops. In some 

 places there are "lady birds," (small beetles) 



