. Economic entomology for the farmer and fruit-grower. Beneficial insects. 76 AN ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY. Fig sand and a tumble into the jaws of the enemy. Should the ant recover a footing before reaching the bottom, a shower of sand, sent by the vigilant larva below, over- whelms and brings it down to its death. When the juices are exhausted, the empty shell is thrown out and the pit is repaired for other victims. Sometimes pits are made in saw-dust or friable leaf mold and some make no pits at all. The adults are of two rather dis- tinct series : the first with short antennae which thicken rathe
. Economic entomology for the farmer and fruit-grower. Beneficial insects. 76 AN ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY. Fig sand and a tumble into the jaws of the enemy. Should the ant recover a footing before reaching the bottom, a shower of sand, sent by the vigilant larva below, over- whelms and brings it down to its death. When the juices are exhausted, the empty shell is thrown out and the pit is repaired for other victims. Sometimes pits are made in saw-dust or friable leaf mold and some make no pits at all. The adults are of two rather dis- tinct series : the first with short antennae which thicken rather gradually toward the tip, including Myrnieleo ; the second with long, slender antennae, enlarging suddenly into a flattened club. The head is larger and the body more robust, covered with stiff bristly hair, giving the insects a fierce appear- ance. The most common genus is Ascalaphus, and the larval habits are not known, though it is probable, from what we learn of foreign species, that they do not build pits or traps. Though interesting, the family is of no economic importance. An odd family is the Mantispidce, so named from the peculiar resemblance which they bear to the Orthopterous genus Mantis. The species are not common, and are easily recognized by the enormously developed forelegs, which are fitted for grasping, and are inserted into a long and slender prothorax. They are pre- daceous, while their larvae are parasitic in the egg-sacs of spiders. The eggs are laid on stalks, as with the "lace-wings," and the slender larvcC that hatch from them live through the winter with- out food, becoming active again in spring, when they seek the. Myrnieleo species.—The adult above; the larva in its pit, which is shown in Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Smith, John Bernhard
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectbenefic, bookyear1906
