. Useful birds and their protection. Containing brief descriptions of the more common and useful species of Massachusetts, with accounts of their food habits, and a chapter on the means of attracting and protecting birds. Birds; Birds. Fig. 9. — Predaceous beetle; the lion Or beetle or caterpillar hunter. (Carabidse) already mentioned, the tiger beetles (Cicinde- lidse), the ladybirds (CoccinellidBe), and many of the true bugs. Such insects are often miscalled parasites, but they do not merit this misnomer. The predaceous beetles are the wolves, lions, and tigers of the insect world. They hunt
. Useful birds and their protection. Containing brief descriptions of the more common and useful species of Massachusetts, with accounts of their food habits, and a chapter on the means of attracting and protecting birds. Birds; Birds. Fig. 9. — Predaceous beetle; the lion Or beetle or caterpillar hunter. (Carabidse) already mentioned, the tiger beetles (Cicinde- lidse), the ladybirds (CoccinellidBe), and many of the true bugs. Such insects are often miscalled parasites, but they do not merit this misnomer. The predaceous beetles are the wolves, lions, and tigers of the insect world. They hunt down their prey, pouncing upon it and killing it when found. Often these insects are so ravenous that they con- tent themselves with drawing the life blood and other juices from their quarry, leaving the rest to be devoured by ants other scavengers. While the larger predaceous beetles attack many of the larger insects, smaller species, such as lady-birds, assail other minute insects, such as the aphids or plant lice. The bugs are the vampires of the insect world with a strong proboscis, the bug pursues its prey, pierces it and sucks its juices, leaving it drained and lifeless ; but the so-called parasitic insects feed in a manner entirely different. Certain families of the Hymenoptera' and Diptera contain parasitic genera and species. These insects range in size from that of a large wasp down to that of a small midge. Most of Fig- them have the habit of depositing their eggs on, or in, the bodies of other living insects. Each ichneumon fly is armed with a long ovipositor, which operates somewhat like a hollow sting, by means of which it is en- abled to pierce the skin of the larvae of other insects and pass its eggs through the puncture, depositing them in the body tis Armed daceous beetle; a tiger among Fifc. 11. —Hymenop terous parasite imago, natural size sues beneath the skin. These ege^s soon and enlarged. hatch, and the young larvae, emerging from.
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookpublisherb, booksubjectbirds
