9 
MEMBRA ClDJE. 
The Irishman’s apology for the smallness of his pig, that “ he is very wicked,” 
may be permitted for the Membracid®, for this quality, so far as appearance goes, 
may be urged as a point of interest, for many are grotesque if not diabolical in 
appearance, and might suggest some of the gruesome shapes represented by the 
Italian painter Orgyia, in the famous frescoes of the Campo Sancto of Pisa. 
But the British neglect of this family is also due to the fact that it is exotic. 
Most scientific biologists up to the present have been European in birth, and 
obviously those objects close to hand would come first under their observation. 
The brilliant colours of the butterfly and the metallic hues of the humming-bird 
easily secure their votaries, whilst the sombre colours of Hemiptera are in great 
measure neglected by many entomologists. 
Times of little things are, however, at hand. “ Natura de minimis admiranda.” 
The microscope is indispensable for the study of bacteriology, and for tracking the 
spread of malaria through the agency of the gnat’s proboscis, or, again, the 
occurrence of Filaria and the parasite of Tsetse in the blood of animals. 
The larger Membracid® do not exceed two English inches in the expanse of 
their wings, but the smaller forms call for the use of a good lens to show the 
peculiarities of their structure. 
If we could give the Membracidae a bad name, some interest in the family might 
be excited, but their characteristics on the economical side are chiefly negative. 
They possess no bad odour, for they show no stink glands, which are the objection¬ 
able marks of many Hemiptera. They do not irritate animals by their skin- 
punctures, for they are exclusively vegetable feeders. They are not in sufficient 
numbers to distress the agriculturalist by doing injury to his crops, though 
Professor Riley says Ccresa bubal ns injures the potato and the apple in certain 
parts of North America. 
Some of those who may inspect the plates of this monograph may feel an 
inclination to laugh at the grotesque outlines shown by species typified by SpJton- 
gopliorus rediculus, but these forbidding aspects belie their life-history, so far as we 
know it, and thus the porcine wickedness, hinted at a few sentences in advance, has 
yet to be proved by the field-naturalist, who has much, however, to teach us as to 
the habits and economy of the Family. 
In a more serious mood the student may remember that the Hemiptera, perhaps 
more than any other insects, are connected with the welfare of the human race. If 
their natural enemies were withdrawn, man’s starvation would ensue from the 
destruction of vegetation ! The wonderful multiplication of Aphidid® and large 
Oicadid®, and their voracity even now affect our industries. 
