CHAPTER XI 



OKTHOPTERA COXTIXUED PHASMIDAE WALKING-LEAVES 



STICK-INSECTS 



Fam. V. Phasmidae — Stick and Leaf Insects. 



Head exserted ; prothorax small, not elongate; viesothorax veri/ 

 elongate ; the six legs differing hut little from one another, 

 the front 2Mir not rcqjtorial, the hind pair not saltatorial. 

 The cerci of the abdomen not jointed, consisting of only one 

 2nece ; the tarsi five-jointed. Tegmina usucdly small, or 

 entirely aiserit, even ivhen the ivings are j^i'esent and ample. 

 The sexes freqtiently very dissimilar. Absence of alar 

 organs frequent. 



These Insects are amongst the most curious of natural objects. 

 They are frequently of large size, some attaining 9 inches 

 in length (Fig. 162, Palojihvs centaurus, one-half natural length). 

 Their variety of form could scarcely be surpassed ; their re- 

 semblance to products of the vegetable kingdom is frequently 

 very great: some of the more linear species (Fig. 148, Lonchodes 

 nematodes) look like sticks or stems of grass; some have a moss- 

 like appearance, while others resemble pieces of lichen-covered 

 bark. The members of the tribe Phylliides are leaf-like. A 

 certain number of other Phasmids are covered with strong 

 spines, like thorns (Fig. 149). The plant-like appearance is 

 greatest in the female sex. When there is a diflerence between 

 the two sexes as to the organs of flight, these are more fully 

 developed in the male. 



The antennae are usually many-jointed, but the number of 

 joints varies fi'om 8 to more than 100; the head is e.xserted ; 

 the eyes are more or less prominent ; ocelli are present in some 



