important part of the wing, and will he presently is a most The name Deemapteka is formed from described more fully. ‘ skin-winged,’ and is given to these two Greek words, signifying

on account of the structure of the elytra. insects As the wings form one of the most important characteristics to describe them. \ ery feAv in these insects, we will proceed

the Earwig is Wished with have the least idea that persona 't 'S sine and beauty, and that, wings of remarkahle much speed in running it is possessed of L as on foot. On Plate VII. Fig. 2, the 'j as it appears with its beaut. is shown, fi^cula avMaria) wings extended.

To display these wings properly is a business of exceedingdifficulty, and demands the greatest patience as well as skill.

Tliey have to he coaxed from under the tiny elytra with infinite

care, and their delicate folds spread one by one lest they should

be torn. I have found that a glass tube, drawn to a rather fine point, is exceedingly useful, for the wings can often be blown open by a current of air directed upon them, when the use of a needle would be nearly certain to damage them. Even when they are at last ‘ teased ’ out, it is no easy matter to spread them flat and keep them so while the card braces are being pressed on them, inasmuch as the membrane, though delicate, is very elastic, and has a tendency to contract and crumple up the whole wing into folds, just as it has been nicely and satisfactorily flattened. If any of my readers should be afflicted with hasty tempers and wish to put themselves through a course of discipline, I can strongly recommend them to take a few Earwigs and set them with expanded wings, taking care to make both wings look alike. When they have succeeded in doing so without losing temper they may be perfectly easy as to their ability in conquering their infirmity.

The mode in which these large and delicate wings are packed into so small a compass is singularly beautiful. The front margin of the wing, from the base to a spot about half-way along it, is rather hard and firm, and at that point is a broad leathery patch which acts as a hinge. From this point the folds of the wing radiate just like those of an open fan ; and, at half their length, the edge of each of these folds is strengthened by a small patch of similar leathery material

When the wing is to be gathered together under its elytron the radiating folds are closed exactly like the bars of a fan' and the closed folds are then doubled twice, once at the small and once at the large hinge. If we suppose each of the bars of a fan to have two hinges, so as to divide it into three equal parts we can understand that it could be folded into a very small compass, first by closing the fan longitudinally, and then doubling It twice crosswise. In. consequence of this beautiful piece of niechan^m Mr. Westwood proposed the name Euplexottera tor the Earwip, the name being of Greek origin, and signifying beautifully-folded ^ ^ wings.

I have mentioned that it is a very difficult task to get the

but impossible to put them back winUS expanded. It is all How, then, can the insect manage to auain under the elytra. involves the real use ot the torreplace them ? This question of the tail. They are generally considered as cens at the end and as such they can he used, being instruments of offence, sharp pinch, as anyone can capable of indicting a tolerably This, however, is not thentestify ^vho has handled an Earwig. e employed in the act of packing primary use, for they are their aid the insect could wings under the elytra, and without properly. I have more thau ouce ^en uevfr secure its wiugs and a very curious and inteiest g an Earwig pack up its wings,

'‘®As soln as the insect settles, it partially folds ^ apparently wrthout any

they fall into a set of wrinkles, that the seemrng eontaon of but in reality-like arlgelnt, being exactly in rts appomted ^ac^ ropes on board ship-each a very hue p ,

ready for the next movement. After and the folds of the wings are gathered towards the elyt« ; and then^^^^^ by ttir by the iorceps, ana y aid the back, the wings are seized are tucked away under the elytra. fnroens in that the insect also loakes use of ^

It is said the wings as well as in closrng ‘I-™' ^ expanding use its foiceps ex I have never seen an Earwig the case but office, the mere beat of c^tt te’the latter air B spreading Liiilu them Eauwio to their (Lahm ful to have the power of ak seeming a”d I -in many resperts, and one insects are remarkable

'‘xTeT

species-whatever m^^^ generality of

ascertained to beh their young,

the insect-race. As a ^ yvEcre the yoimg larva

They deposit their eggs m ® further care

of them, indeed, tne g of rnaternal insects die care as soon is im- as "d re gtter ’number

Tth“

they have deposited their ants take care

passible. the’case. Care is cerof their young. Thi , mother, who larvs, but not liy taken of the young

tainly

Plate Vii. Earwigs, Field-Cockroach, And Crickets.

Forficula gigantea, 2. Forficula auricularia. 3. Blatta germanica. 4. Blatta germanica (egg-case). 5. Gryllotalpa vulgaris. 6. Gryllus campestris. PiAKTS : — Great Bindweed {^Convolvulus sepiuni). Above. Purple Clover {Trifolium pratense). Right of Middle.

does nothing but deposit the eggs, and then leaves to the workers the task of feeding and nurturing ' the helpless young.

But, according to the observations of De Geer, the Earwig forms an honourable exception to this rule, and watches as carefully over the young as a hen does over her chickens. She deposits the eggs in some spot which is at the same time damp and moist, and if one of these conditions should fail shifts the eggs to another place. The same observer noticed that even after the eggs have been intentionally displaced the mother insect will collect and replace them. These curious statements have been corroborated by Mr. Spence, who writes as follows : ‘ This remarkable fact I have myself witnessed, having found an Earwig under a stone, which I accidentally tm-ned over, sitting' upon a cluster of young ones, just as this celebrated naturalist has described.’

The larvae very much resemble in form the perfect insect, except that they have no wings, and the forceps are not well developed, the prongs being nearly straight and not possessing the bold curve which is seen in the perfect insect. In the pupal state the wing-cases make their appearance in a rudimentary form, but the wings are not developed until the insect has passed through its final change. Moreover, in the imperfect stages of life the Earwig has much fewer joints in the antennae — the perfect insect of the common species having fourteen and the larva only eight.

Interesting as is the Earwig to the naturalist, it is specially hateful to the gardener. It has a very disagreeable habit of feeding on the petals of flowers, nibbling their edges and making them unsightly. The dahlia and the carnation are favourite flowers with the Earwig, and as a true and perfect edge forms one of the chief points in these flowers the gardener has good reason to hate the insect. As, moreover, the Earwigs as a rule feed by night it is no easy matter to guard the flowers from their depredations.

Disliking the light. Earwigs hide themselves by day in any dark cranny that they can find ; and, by taking advantage of this habit, their numbers can be sensibly diminished, thouo-h they cannot be altogether extirpated. For this purpose, gardeners are in the habit of putting inverted flower-pots, lobster-

claws, and similar objects, on the tops of the sticks to which the plants are tied, so that the Earwigs may crawl into them at night and be captured in the morning. There is, however, a neater and more effective mode of catching these insects.

Instead of capping the tops of the sticks with such unsightly objects as lobster-claws and flower-pots, let a number of tubes be made, about three or four inches in length and half an inch or less in diameter. These may be made from elder branches, from wild hemlock stems, or even from brown paper. One end must be plugged up, and the tube is then hung to the stick with the open end downwards. In the morning, the tubes should be gently lifted from the sticks to which they are suspended, the plug removed, and the Earwigs blown into a convenient vessel, from which they can be thrown into boiling water. The plug is then replaced, and the tube allowed to hang in its former place.

These insects are able to devour both animal and vegetable food, though they seem to prefer the latter. They are said to enter the nests of certain solitary bees and to feed upon the larva? ; and De Greer remarked that the young Earwigs which he watched not only ate the bodies of their brethren who died, but ill repaid the watchful care of their mother by devouring her dead body.

Only a few species of Earwig are known in this country, and none of them attain any great size. The Gtiant Earwig, the largest and rarest of these insects, is represented on Plate VII. Fig. 1. Its name is Labidura gigantea, and, as Lord Lytton remarks, ‘ to the great grief of natm-alists, and to the great is very rarely found.’ It was fii'st dishonour of Providence, by the Eev. W. Bingley, in 1808, upon the beach near coved He observed that it seldom quits its place of Christchurch. in the rocks during the daytime, but runs about the refuge sands in search of food after the sun has gone down. no other specimens of this fine insect were

For many years, doubts were entertained as to the prodiscovered, and some it among the British insects. Of late priety of admitting have been known, so that Mr. Bingyears, however, its haunts

ley’s specimens were not the only examples. A good specimen was taken on the sands at Folkestone by a

in my collection observation to see that the insect was a

lady who had sufficient

peculiar one, sufficient coui-age to capture it, and sufficient discrimination to send it to me. It was caught in the afternoon, and I think that it must have been frightened out of its hidingplace by a little boy who was digging in the sand and getting into mischief, after the custom of children on the sea-shore.

By some entomologists this insect is placed in a separate genus on account of its antennae, which have more than twice as many joints as those of the common species. The name Lahidura is composed of two Grreek words, signifying ‘ pincertail,’ and is a very appropriate one, the forceps being of very great proportionate size. The name Forjicula, which is given to the common species, is Latin, and signifies ‘ little forceps.’

As this instrument is so important, both in the economy of the insect and in deciding the species, the forceps of the two species which have been described are given on Woodcut XXV. At Fig. a is shown the forceps of the male Griant Earwig, and at Fig. h those of the female. Similarly, the forceps of the male Common Earwg are shown at Fig. c, and those of the female at d.

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