258 NEUEOPTERA. 



Caddis-flies (PHRYGANioiE) 



Caddis - flies, Water - moths, or Trirliofdera, are Neuroptera 

 that are aquatic during their larval life. The adults resemble 

 moths in appearance ; hut the 'wmgs are not scaly, and are turned 

 down at the sides when at rest. They are more or less covered 

 with hairs, and the cross-veins are much fewer than in most 

 Neuroptera ; legs and antennse are long, and their mouth-parts 

 are but poorly developed. The eggs are laid in gelatinous 

 masses upon water-plants. The larvse, which are extremely 

 injurious to water-cress, — so Mr Coe of Alhury informs me,— 

 live in curious cases made up of stones, shells, pieces of wood, 

 &c. The Caddis-worms are long cylindrical larvae with scaly 

 heads and strong jaws ; the three segments near the head are 

 leathery, and each bears a pair of legs. The front part of the 

 larva alone sticks out when moving, the other nine segments 

 being enclosed in the curious larval case. The tail has two 

 hooks by which the insect anchors itself to a stone or plant 

 in the water. Some species reach nearlj' an inch in length. 

 The pupal stage is passed in the case, the pupa emerging a short 

 time previous to the advent of the adult, and crawling up to the 

 surface of the water, ready to escape. There are a great number 

 of sjjecies ; but the most abundant in the water-cress beds is 

 Limnephilus Jiaoicornis, which has a wing-expanse of one and 

 a quarter inch. 



Prevention and, Remedies consist in draining off the beds and 

 clearing out all the plants, leaving the beds to dry for some 

 weeks previous to winter planting. Birds, especially sparrows, 

 clear the insects off, and do much good. When present in 

 numbers, a good plan is to fill the beds fuU of water and move 

 the tops of the plants about with poles and rakes to shake 

 the worms off- they then float to the top, and are run off with 

 the excess of water. 



