The Lantern Fly — The Cochineal Insect. 571 
THE LANTERN FLY. (Fulgora laternaria.) 
This Lantern Fly is a nocturnal insect, with a hood or 
bladder on the head, which is semi-transparent, and very 
curiously ornamented with red and green stripes. By 
some writers it has been affirmed that this part of the 
insect shines brilliantly at night, so that it is even pos- 
sible to read by it. No modern entomologist has, how- 
ever, witnessed this phenomenon, and it is generally 
believed that the supposed luminosity of the Lantern 
Fly exists only in the stories of the natives of South 
America. The wings and whole body are elegantly 
adorned with a mixture of red, green, yellow, and other 
splendid colours. 
THE COCHINEAL INSECT. (Coccus cacti.) 
The Cochineal Insect is of the same genus as the scale 
insect on the vine, which looks like a little bit of wool 
attached to the branch, but which, when pressed, stains 
the fingers with a red liquid. The Cochineal Insect in 
the like manner affixes itself to the leafy stems of the 
nopal-tree, a kind of opuntia, or prickly-pear, common 
in Mexico and South America, whence the Cochineal 
used in Europe is principally imported. 
