78 
INTRODUCTION TO 
sent remarks are of a more general nature, and ap- 
plicable to the whole. 
The majority of larva have a vermiform appear- 
ance, the body being long, narrow, and inclining to 
cylindric. Such as present this aspect are the kinds 
which differ most conspicuously from the perfect 
insect; the others differ only in parts which are not 
influential over the general appearance. An obvious 
division of larvae, therefore, is into such as are 
wholly unlike the perfect insect, and such as bear a 
greater or less resemblance to it. They are all des- 
titute of wings, and have the common character of 
being unfitted to propagate the species. 
Some attempts have been made to classify larvae 
in a manner similar to that followed with perfect 
insects. These have not, however, been attended 
with much success, both on account of the inherent 
difficulties of the subject, and our comparatively 
imperfect acquaintance with insects in that condition. 
Mr. MacLeay was the first who endeavoured to 
divide them into groups, to which he assigned names 
suggested by the analogy which they presented to 
other articulated animals. Thus, for example, he 
names Chilognathiform, such lame as offer certain 
analogical forms reminding us of scolopendrse ; Chib - 
podiform , those resembling juli ; and those resem- 
bling lepisma he terms Thysanouriform. This author 
applied his system to the larvee of coleoptera only; 
Kirby and Spence adopted the idea and extended 
it to the other orders ; and it has been more or less 
