EC ea 
IV. Nevroprera. Wings four, nake 
lated, with veins or nerves. 
V. Hymenoprera. Wings four. 
of the female armed with a fling. 
VI. DipreRA. Wings two. 
VII. ApTERA. No wings. 
d, tran{parent, reticy. 
Tail without fting. 
Membraneous. Tail 
TRANSFORMATIONS OF INSECTS, 
Many of our readers are no doubt acquainted with the fingular 
transformations Infeéts undergo, but we truft thofe will pardon a 
digreffion which may be ufeful to thofe who have not that knowledge; 
and without premifing farther we proceed to inform them, that Infetts 
in general undergo a material change in their form at ftated periods 
of their lives; there are fome, though few, which burft forth from 
the egg perfectly formed, as Spiders, &c. but the greater part exift 
in four feveral ftates: the firft that of the egg, whence the Larva, or 
Caterpillar is produced ; it is at firft very minute, but in this ftate it 
feeds, fome kinds on one or two plants only, others promifcuoufly on 
many, they therefore continue to increafe in fize, moulting feveral 
times the outer fkin, until the deftined period of their dormant ftate 
approaches ; they then {pin a web more or lefs {trong according to the 
{pecies, and are converted into the aurelia, or chryfalis; and laftly 
they burft forth in due feafon perfeétly formed. It is under this 
form they propagate a future race, and themfelves perith, as they 
rarely furvive the inclemencies of the winter. 
The antient naturalifts held fuppofitions very imperfeé& and erro- 
neous relative to thofe transformations, but Malpighi and Sooners 
dam proved by many accurate examinations clearly, that thofe changes 
were not fuddenly effetted, but gradual; and that under the form of 
the Caterpillar they could diftinguifh the future changes the Infeét 
would undergo. 
PLA Ss 
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