49 
G R Y L L U S. 
nomy of thefe infefls; which, however, are fo fliy and 
cautions, he obferves, that it is no eafy matter to get a 
light of them; for, feeling a perfon’s footfteps as he ad¬ 
vances, they (top fliort in the midft of their fong, and 
retire backward nimbly into their burrows, where they 
lurk till all fufpicion of danger is over. At firft it was 
attempted to dig them'out with a fpade, but without 
any great fuccefs ; for either the bottom of the hole 
was inaeceffible from its terminating under a great (lone ; 
or elfe, in breaking up the ground, the poor infefl was 
inadvertently fqueezed to death. Out of one fo bruifed 
a multitude of eggs were taken, which were long and 
narrow, of a yellow colour, and covered with a very 
tough (kin. More gentle means were then ufed, and 
proved fuccefsful: “ A pliant (talk of grafs, gently in- 
finuated into the caverns, Will probe their windings to 
the bottom, and quickly bring out the inhabitant; and 
thus the humane inquirer may gratify his curiofity with¬ 
out injuring the object of it. It is remarkable, that 
though thefe infe6ts are furnifhed with long legs be¬ 
hind, and brawny thighs for leaping, like grafshoppers ; 
yet when driven from their holes they (how no great a6ti- 
vity, but crawl along in a (hiftiefs manner, fo as eafily 
to be taken : and again, though provided with a curi¬ 
ous apparatus of wings, yet they never exert them when 
there feems to be the greateft occafion. The males 
only make that thrilling noife perhaps out of rivalry 
and emulation, as is the cafe with many animals, which 
exert fome fprightly note during their breeding time : 
it is raifed by a brifk friftion of one wing againft'the 
other. They are folitary beings, living fingly male or 
female, each as it may happen; but there mud be a 
time when the fexes have fome intercourfe, and then 
the wings may be ufeful perhaps during the hours of 
night. When the males meet they will fight fiercely, 
as our author found by fome which he put into the cre¬ 
vices of a dry (lone wall, where he wanted to have made 
them fettle. For though they feemed diltreffed by be¬ 
ing taken out of their knowledge, yet the firft that got 
pofleflion of the chinks would feize on any that were 
obtruded .upon them with a vaft row of ferrated fangs. 
With their ftrong jaws, toothed like the (hears of a lob- 
fter’s claws, they perforate and round their curious re¬ 
gular cells, having no fore-claws to dig like the mole- 
cricket. When taken in the hand, they never offered 
to defend themfelves, though armed with fuch formi¬ 
dable weapons. Of fuch herbs as grow before the 
mouths of their burrows they eat indifcriminately ; and 
on a little platform, which they make juft by, they 
drop their dung; and never, in the day time, feem to 
ftir more than two or three inches from home. Sitting 
in the entrance of their cavernSj they chirp all night as 
well as day from the middle of the month of May to 
the middle of July; in hot weather, when they are 
mod vigorous, they make the hills echo ; and in the 
(tiller hours of darknefs may be heard to a confidera- 
ble diftance. In the beginning of the feafon their notes 
are more faint and inward; but become louder as the 
fummer advances, and fo die away again by degrees. 
Sounds do not always give us pleaiure according to 
their fweetnefs and melody; nor do har(h founds al¬ 
ways difpleafe. We are more apt to be captivated or 
diigufted with the affociations' which they promote, 
than with the notes themfelves. Thus the (hrilling of 
the field-cricket, though (harp and ftridulous, yet mar- 
velloufly delights fome hearers, filling their minds with 
a train of fummer ideas of every thing that is rural," ver¬ 
durous, and joyous. About the-tenth of March the 
crickets appear at the mouths of their cells, which they 
then open and bore, and (hape very elegantly. In Au- 
guft their holes begin to be obliterated, and the infedts 
are feen no more till fpring. Not many fummers ago I 
endeavoured to tranfplant a colony to the terrace in my 
garden, by boring deep holes in the (loping turf. The 
new inhabitants (laid fome time, and fed and fung; but 
Vol.IX. No. 565. 
wandered away by degrees, and were heard at a farthe r 
diftance every morning; fo that it appears that on thi s 
emergency they made ufe of their wings in attempting 
to return to the fpot from which they were taken. One 
of thefe crickets, when confined in a paper cage and let 
in the fun, and fupplied with plants moiftened with wa¬ 
ter, will feed and thrive, and become fo merry and loud 
as to be irkfome in the fame room where a perfon is fit¬ 
ting : if the plants are not wetted, it will die.” 
31. Gryllusumbraculatus : black, wing-cafes tipt with 
white; frent covered with an obovate deflected mem¬ 
brane. Head ferruginous, with a black membrane co¬ 
vering the front; ftyles villotjs ; legs black. Inhabits 
Barbary ; a little lefs than the laft. 
32. Gryllus hofpes: wings tailed, longer than the wing- 
cafes, white with a brown rib ; wing-cafes white fpotted 
with black. Antennae brown, a little longer than the 
body; head and thorax black; wing-cafes (hort; ab¬ 
domen black; tail with a fpinous recurved projedion 
nearly as long as the body; legs brown; hind-(hanks 
fpinous at the tip. Inhabits America. 
33. Gryllus crocis: wings tailed, longer than the 
wing-cafes; body brown; margin of the wing-cafes 
dotted with black. Margin of the thorax yellow ; 
wings whiti(h ; artennae thrice as long as the body. 
Inhabits Santa Cruz. 
34. Gryllus Guadeloupenfis: wings without tails; 
body brown ; legs pale. Thorax with a large yellowifti 
fpot; wings and wing-cafes equal, hardly longer than 
the body; tail without the ftyle ; legs yellowifti ; hind- 
(hanks ferrate. Inhabits Guadaloupe ; fmall. 
33. Gryllus allioni: head and thorax yellowifti; 
wing-cafes aqueous, as long as the wings. Antennae 
longer than the body; eyes black; wing-Cafes flat, 
rounded, water-colour; wings hardly longer than the 
cafes, (harp; abdomen black; fore-legs yellowifti, the 
hind-ones brown with fpinous (hanks. Inhabits Italy. 
36. Gryllus minutus : wings tailed ; body yellowifti; 
hind-(hanks three-fpined. Inhabits America. 
37. Gryllus filveftris: apterous, black ^ wing-cafes 
vaulted, very fliort, cinereous with brown lin£s. Tho¬ 
rax pale with a blackilh edge all round; abdomen 
black with a recurved fpine longer than the two ftyles. 
Inhabits France; fmall. 
38. Gryllus gryllodes: grey; thorax depreffed; ab¬ 
domen brownifti, a little longer than the wing-cafes; 
wings longer than the wing-cafes, reticulate, grey- 
hyaline. Inhabits Jamaica. 
39. Gryllus binotatus : black ; bafe of the wing-cafes 
with two yellow fpots; antennae (horter than the body. 
Inhabits Europe. 
40. Gryllus pellucens : whitifh ; thorax trapeziform. 
Head lucid; thorax with three brown fpots; wing- 
cafes yellowifti. Inhabits Carr.iola and Italy. 
41. Gryllus gigas: body entirely bay. Inhabits 
America. 
42. Gryllus teffellatus: brown-teftaceous; wings 
teffellate with white and black. Inhabits St. John’s 
Ifland. 
43. Gryllus membranaceus: pale teftaceous ; thorax 
with a yellowifh collar; wings tailed, ochraceous. In¬ 
habits the Deferts of Ural. 
44. Gryllus Surinamenfis: grey-brown; thorax flat; 
wing-cafes with an oblong black fpot; hind-legs twice 
as long as the body. Inhabits Surinam. 
45. Gryllus muticus: head and wing-cafes bay ; legs 
teftaceous; tail of the female unarmed. Inhabits Su¬ 
rinam. 
46. Gryllus ater: black-brown; tail of the female 
unarmed. Inhabits Surinam. 
47. Gryllusfafciatus: brown; thorax and wing-cafes 
with fulvous lines. Inhabits Penfylvania. 
48. Gryllus niveus; whitifh ; wing-cafes and wings 
fnowy; thorax elongate^; antennas and hind-thighs 
very long. Inhabits Penfylvania. 
O 49. Gryllus 
