OF THE PINE-APPLE. 511 



many of them, and especially the smaller ones, 

 may be perceived to move to different parts of 

 the plant, being in appearance much like a turtle 

 in miniature. 



A sweet glutinous matter issues from these 

 insects ; this soon turns mouldy, and in time 

 becomes quite black, which causes the plants to 

 appear very unsightly. But as these insects do 

 not in any other respect injure the Pine-plants, I 

 shall pass them over, and proceed to those of a 

 more pernicious nature. 



2. The White Scaly Insect. a This species 

 is very nearly allied to the former, both of them 

 being Cocci, and of the oviparous kind: it seems 

 to be exactly similar to it in its manner of breed- 

 ing, the process of which the curious naturalists 

 in this branch have observed to be nearly as follows* 

 The eggs, which are discharged from the female,,, 

 are pushed forward between the skin of the belly 

 and the leaf of the plant to which the insect 

 adheres ; in consequence of this, the skin of the 

 belly becomes less distended, which enables the 

 insect to afford a larger covering to the eggs 

 already excluded. When the eggs are all dis- 

 charged, the skin of the belly retreats close to 

 the back of the parent insect, which then appears 

 like a mere scale. If the insect in this state be 

 raised, with the point of a needle, from the leaf, 

 a number of eggs may be perceived under it, of a 



a This insect has hitherto remained undescribed. Neither Lin- 

 naeus, Geoffroy, Scopoli, or Schseffer, seem to have known it. 



x 4 



