56 PHYSIOLOGY OF THE EGGS 
hundred. This may be considered extraordinary 
fecundity in such small animals ; but, compared to 
the Queen Bee, it sinks into insignificance ; for she 
extrudes the extraordinary number of 2,419,200 in 
a lunar month, and exceeds in fruitfulness every 
other animal in the world. 
Some of the larger fishes lay vast numbers of eggs ; 
for Lewenhoek has ascertained that the sturgeon’s 
roe contains 1,500,000, and the codfish deposits the 
amazing number of 9,000,000. 
The eggs of birds are all nearly of the same shape, 
which is supposed to arise from the similarity of the 
form of these animals. The eggs of insects, on the 
contrary, are infinitely varied in their forms,and why 
this should be the case, it is not easy to conjecture. 
Dr Paley has justly remarked in his Natewral Theology, 
that the cause of these differences of forms is, for the 
most part, concealed from human investigation. 
Besides the dissimilarity of shape, they have a cha- 
racter which distinguishes them from all the eggs 
of other oviparous animals, being for the most part 
extermally ornamented with a variety of beautiful 
figures. Some are figured on one side, and plain on 
the other ; while the eggs of the Tusseh Silkworm, 
(Attacus pappea,) and some other of the Moths of 
the division Bombyx, are always orbicular, and de- 
pressed with a central cavity above and below, and 
have their circumference crossed with wrinkles, 
corresponding with the rings of the enclosed embryo. 
