METHOD OK I\SKin'IX(; 'I'HK KOt; 
()<) 
Miynioi) OF iNSKiMiNc iiii; i:(;(;s, 
Tlu* work of the fiMuale Cicada in insciM iiii: li<*i' c.irirs is an iiilci-csl iiiix 
subject for study, and so littl(> docs slic mind tlic |)i-cscncc of an 
observer that \\\c op(M-atiou can l)e closely w atched w itlu)nt hei- exhib- 
iting: any alarm. 'V\\o position taken is almost in\aiial)ly with the 
head u|)\vai\l or directed toward tlu* tij) of the l)i-anch, the work bciiiL: 
steadily pn)se('ut(Ml in that direction. AVhen her course is inlcirercci 
with by th(> occurr(Mic(> of side shoots, instead of mo\ iiiLT 1" <>iie >ide 
or the other she reverses luu' i)osition and thus (wtends her row of 
puuctun^s iu a straiirht liu(* completcdy to the base of the inlei\ (mhiil^ 
shoot. 'r\\o bi'anch .selectcMl is oi'dinarily of a si/e which the fcm.-ilc 
can surround and chisj) "firmly with her le^^s to ;j;ive hei- the >tron<^ 
attachment necessary to enal)le her to force her ovi|)osiloi- into the 
woody t issuers. 
The exact method of nnikinjj: the ei:^ (issure and deposit im: ih<> <\Lr,ii:s 
has hitherto, in the 
main, been either 
ven' l)riefly referred 
to, or tlie actions of 
the ins(>ct have been 
inaccurately inter- 
preted. The (h'scrip- 
tion of this process, 
hitherto i^enerally ac- 
cepted and (pioted. 
is that given by Doc- 
tor Harris, substan- 
tially as follows: 
Raising her body 
somewhat above the 
twig, the point of her 
ovipositor is brought to bear on the bark at an angle of 45 degrees, 
and is thrust slowly and repeatedly into the hark and wood, th(^ two 
lateral saws working in alternation. When fully inserte(| the instru- 
ment is pried upward by a motion of the alxlomcn, raisiiiLT and loosen- 
ing in this way little fibers of wood which, renjainiiiL: attached, form 
a sort of covering for the egg fissure or nest. The c iiliiiiL: noiinally 
extends nearly to the j)ith or about one-twelfth of an inch in depth, 
and is continued until space is made to receive from ten to twenty 
eggs. After preparing the egg nest as described, the fennde moves 
back to the point of commencement and again tiunists in hei- ovi])osi- 
tor, using the two side pieces as grooves or channels to convey the 
eggs into the twigs, where they are placed in pairs, separated l)y a 
central tongue of woody fiber, w Inch has been left undisturbed, and 
which is wider at the bottom than at the top. Two eggs having been 
Fig. 44.— Egg nest of the periodical Cicada: a, recent i)unctnre, front 
view; h, same, surface removed to show arrangement of eggs, from 
above; r, same, side \ie\v; d, egg cavity exposed after eggs arc 
removed, and showing the sculpture left by the ovipositor. All 
enlarged (after Rilcj'). 
