APPENDIX 
105 
APPENDIX 
OVIPOSITORS-—The females of many insects 
have saws or piercing instruments concealed within 
part of the abdomen. In others, a comparatively 
long organ, called “ovipositor,” is present, and is 
used for placing the insect’s eggs in positions re¬ 
quired in view of the particular food which will 
be needed by the larvae that emerge from these 
eggs. 1 his position is sometimes below the surface 
of the ground, sometimes beneath the bark or in 
the cambium layer of a tree trunk or branch, and 
sometimes in the body of a caterpillar, grub or 
•insect. 
COCOONS—Many larvae give out a silky or 
cottony material from their bodies—notably those 
of the Honey Bee, the Day-Flying Moth and the 
Silkworm Moth—from which they cleverly spin a 
complete covering material in which to hide and 
be sheltered from unfavourable weather during the 
period of “pupation”—the period during which the 
wonderful metamorphosis resulting in the “perfect 
insect" is in progress. This covering, called a 
"cocoon," is of a very elaborate character. It 
usually has a beautiful appearance and is provided 
with a conical protuberance at one end, pierced by 
a canal. This canal is formed with great care by 
the larva, which from time to time pushes its head 
into the open end, and stretches it by opening its 
mouth. The object of the canal is probably to 
assist ventilation around the surface of the “pupa. 
