l68 ARTHROPODS: INSECTS. 



Tineans. 



These Moths, in the larva state, gnaw winding pas- 

 sages in the substances upon which they feed. They 

 devour some of the fragments, and fasten together 

 others with silken threads, thus making a covering for 

 their tender bodies. They are the smallest of the Lepi- 

 doptera, and are generally very beau- 

 tiful. They enter through the cracks 

 into closets, drawers, and chests, they 



Fifj;. 2S6. — Tinean. j_ i ^i j r j. j 



'^ get under the edges of carpets, and 



into the folds of curtains and garments, and here de- 

 posit their eggs. In about fifteen days the eggs hatch, 

 and the larvse immediately begin to gnaw whatever is 

 within reach, covering themselves with the fragments, 

 shaping them into hollow rolls, and lining them with 

 silk. They generally live in these through the sum- 

 mer, become torpid in autumn, change to chrysalides 

 in spring, and in twenty days come forth moths. 



Two-wiNGED Insects, or Diptera. 



Flies, Mosquitoes, the Hessian Fly, Bee Flies, Horse- 

 flies, and all their numerous relatives, have only two 

 wings, the place of the hind wings being occupied by 

 two small knobbed threads, called balancers. Mosqui- 

 toes have a long bill composed of bristles sharper than 

 the sharpest needles, with which they pierce the flesh 

 of men and animals, and secure the blood upon which 

 they so much delight to feed. The female lays her 

 eggs on the surface of the water, and the larvae may 

 be seen in great numbers, throughout the summer, in 

 all stagnant pools. They are \'ery lively, and move 

 with a wriggling motion. They rest with the head 



