GRASSHOPPERS AND CRICKETS. 
4i 
Fig. 43.—Portion of the Cornea 
of a Fly’s Compound Eye 
( magnified ). 
like ours, but are more like the sounds we produce 
when playing on a violin. Careful observation of a 
male cricket will best show 
us a method of stridulating , 
as this process of insect-talk¬ 
ing is called. Watching a 
cricket as he stridulates, 
one can see that the outer 
wings are raised and rapid¬ 
ly moved from side to side. 
If, now, the wing be ex¬ 
amined with a microscope, 
a clear membrane remind¬ 
ing us of a drum-head will 
be seen on each wing, and 
on the under side of each 
outer wing will be found an enlarged roughened cross¬ 
vein which is used like the bow of a violin, being drawn 
across the edge of the opposite wing- 
cover to set in motion the membranous 
drum-heads. 
The cricket’s organ of hearing is situ¬ 
ated on the tibia of the front leg. Some 
insects hear by means of hairs on the 
antennae or elsewhere which move in 
unison with vibrations about them. In 
some cases insects may be able to hear 
sounds entirely inaudible to human ears. 
Taste and Smell. The sense of taste 
probably resides in the palpi. That the 
grasshopper can smell is evident from 
the way in which he chooses his food, 
and also from the fact that certain odors 
seem disagreeable to him. 
Touch. That the grasshopper pos¬ 
sesses the sense of touch is easy to prove, and that 
the antennae are especially sensitive as tactile organs 
is equally evident. The antennae are provided with 
Fig. 44.—The 
Hearing 
Organ of a 
C r i c k e t 
( magnified ). 
