14. Elementary Manual of Zoology. 
Wantidg.—These insects are remarkable on account of the modification 
of the femur and tibia of the front legs for the purpose of catching 
insects. The egys are laid in masses of frothy matter which hardens 
so as to form a protection to the eggs. The young are much like 
their parents, but without wings. They feed upon similar food. 
Mantide destroy a large number of insects, some of which may be 
destructive ones, but they are of no great importance. The students 
should sketch a typical mantis from the Museum and examine the 
structure of the front pair of legs. 
Phasmid@.—Thege are curious weak creatures, which mimic dry’ sticks 
+ and leaves in a wonderful manner. They feed upon leaves, but are 
ngt usually numerous enough to do any appreciable damage, They are 
noticed chiefly as examples of the perfection to which the phenome- 
non of mimicry obtains amongst insects. The students should sketch 
a stick insect from the Museum. 
Acridtda.—This group is a most important one. It comprises not only 
the loeusts, which are often most destructive in India, but also a vast 
number of grass-hoppers of al! kinds, whivh damage crops to a greater 
or less extent. The Acridide can alway’ be easily distinguished 
from other groups of leaping Orthoptera, by their short antenna 
and thick-set bodies. The Acridide all feed upon growing plants, 
and the general features of their habits are somewhat similar, though 
they sometimes differ from each other in points that are of import- 
ance in dealing with them practically. About the most important 
species is the migratory locust (Aeridium peregrinum, Oliv.) of 
North-Western India, In its adult stage this insect is between two 
and three inches in length, When it first acquires wings it is of a 
beautiful salmon pink, but this colour later on changes to yellow and 
afterwards toa dull purple. It breeds permanently in the sandy 
deserts of Western Rajpntana and the North-west frontier, from 
which region flights periodically invade all parts of India. The 
eggs are laid in the ground, and hatchin about a month. The young 
larve are little wingless grass-hoppers, which feed on green plants 
of almost every kind and often do a vast amount of damage to 
crops. The larval stage lasts for from one to two months, during 
which time the insects moult their skins at intervals, When full 
grown they moult their skins for the last time and acquire wings. 
They then take flight and fly about the country in swarms, alighting 
at intervals to devour the crops. In the Deccan there is another 
migratory locust, Aeridium suceinctum, Linn., which can at once be 
distinguished from Acridium peregrinum by the sculpture on its 
thorax. It breeds permanently in hill ranges and belongs to a zone 
of more luxuriant vegetation than <Acridium peregrinum. Its life 
history is very similar, but it is not found altogether amenable to the 
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