chap, v.] DESTROYING INSECTS. 131 
for some time* they will* if a favourable 
opportunity appears to offer* suddenly spread 
out their wings and buzz away* leaving their 
captor too much astonished to be able to 
make any effort to retain them. Several 
of these insects may often be found in one 
rose; but they are supposed to be only 
engaged in sucking the honey from the 
flower* and not injuring it. They undergo 
their transformations under ground* and the 
grubs are supposed to live entirely on little 
bits of rotten wood. Besides the insects 
already mentioned* the various kinds of 
weevils* the wire-worm* the thrips* the red 
spider* or rather mite (Acarus telarius)* 
various kinds of tipula* or Gaffer long-legs* 
wood lice* and earth-worms* are all found on 
plants* and are all more or less injurious to 
them. In the general destruction of insects* 
the Lady-bird should always be spared* as* 
both in its larva and its perfect state* it lives 
on the larvae of the green fly* or aphis. 
Snails and Slugs are more destructive to 
vegetation than any kind of insect; and 
they are still more difficult to get rid of. 
There is a very small gray slug* that is 
k 2 
