are of moderate size and of varying shades of brown, sometimes marked with 

 black. All are shy and active and not easy to capture, as their flattened form 

 permits them ready escape in crevices and crannies. The eggs are deposited in 

 pouches known as ootheca. The young resemble the adults in general form, but 

 are wingless, while some species of the adults are provided with wings, the length 

 varying in different species. 



The Mantids are the one family of truly carnivorous Orthoptera. They are 

 rather stout though elongate, short-winged, clumsy insects, having the middle and 

 hind pair of legs rather weak, while the front pair, strong and heavily spined, are 

 developed into formidable organs for grasping their prey. When at rest the pro- 

 thorax is somewhat elevated and these grasping legs are held folded against the 

 thorax in what appears an attitude of devout meditation, from which they have 

 been called in some cases "Praying Mantis." Far from religious is their real pur- 

 pose, however, as the near approach of a small insect will result in a swift 

 grasping of the incautious insect, which is then borne to the cruel, powerful man- 

 dibles and calmly devoured in spite of its struggles. After the repast is com- 

 pleted the prayerful attitude is again resumed. The Mantids are commonly 

 found perched amid the branches of trees and shrubs and from their sluggish 

 movements and dull usually protective coloration, are not commonly noticed. 

 They are in general southern in range, and there are but about twenty species 

 known in the United States. Common rumor has it that they are poisonous and 

 they have been called by such names as "Mule Killers" and "Devil Horses." It 

 need hardly be said that they are as much misjudged in this regard as in regard 

 to their supposed religious propensities, and none are at all harmful, indeed, they 

 are to be considered as among our most beneficial insects, from the vast numbers 

 of other insects harmful to vegetation which they destroy. 



The Phasmidae includes in America a number of attenuate insects com- 

 monly known as the Walking Sticks, but in the tropics, where it is more varied, 

 it includes also such forms as the Leaf Insects, in which the body and the seg- 

 ments of the legs are broadly flattened, the colors usually green and the wings 

 heavily veined, giving a resemblance to the leaves of plants which must be highly 

 protective. In the tropics also the Walking Stick types are abundant and some 

 reach great size, some attaining a length of nearly fifteen inches. In America, 

 where the group is poorly developed, the largest species is Megaphasma denticrus, 

 which is found from the Gulf of Mexico north to Missouri, while the most com- 

 mon of these insects belong to the genus Diapheromera. Like the Mantids, these 

 insects are commonly found on the branches of trees and shrubs, where they feed 

 upon the leaves. The eggs are dropped singly to the ground beneath. In all 

 of the Phasmids the males are smaller and more brightly colored than the female. 



(To be continued). 



THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



A monthly Magazine Devoted to the Study of Scientific Entomology, 

 Volume 46, begins in January, 1914. It is the oldest established magazine 

 of the kind in America and has a world-wide circulation. Subscription, $2 

 (postage paid) per annum, which includes a copy of The Annual Report 

 of the Entomological Society of Ontario to the Legislature. Editor, Dr. E. 

 M. Walker, Biological Department, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. 



Published by the Entomological Society of Ontario, Guelph, Canada. 



139 



