. Animals of land and sea. Zoology; Insects; Zoology. THE LARGEST LIVING CREATURES 149 very narrow. Much broader are the wings of the dull females of the gorgeous Ornithopteras of the East Indies, some of which spread 8 inches. The most vivid of all butterflies are the males of the South American Morphos, several of which are very large, 71/2 inches across the wings, equalled in size in the western hemisphere only by the related but much more sombre owl butterflies or Caligos. Of the beetles the bulkiest and heaviest are the largest of the elephant beetles of South America; one which Mr. H. S.
. Animals of land and sea. Zoology; Insects; Zoology. THE LARGEST LIVING CREATURES 149 very narrow. Much broader are the wings of the dull females of the gorgeous Ornithopteras of the East Indies, some of which spread 8 inches. The most vivid of all butterflies are the males of the South American Morphos, several of which are very large, 71/2 inches across the wings, equalled in size in the western hemisphere only by the related but much more sombre owl butterflies or Caligos. Of the beetles the bulkiest and heaviest are the largest of the elephant beetles of South America; one which Mr. H. S. Barber measured for me was 4 5/8 inches in total length, 33/4 inches from end of body to tip of jaws, and 21/8 inches broad. A longi- corn beetle from the Pacific islands, found in Fiji and other places, is the longest of the beetles, 57/8 inches in body length, but only i 3/4 inches across. The African goliath beetles are very large, one which I measured being 37/8 inches long and 17/8 inches across. The well known Hercules beetle, found at Dominica and in many other places in the American tropics, reaches a length of 6 3/8 inches, but a considerable part of this is made up of the long projecting horn. From the tip of the jaws to the hinder end of the body it is only 3 1/4 inches, the width being only i 13/16 inches. Extremely long front legs are possessed by a curious beetle from tropical America (Acrocinus longimanus). One secured by Mr. Barber measures no less than 13 1/8 inches from clav/ to claw across these extended legs. Contrast with these a little beetle which feeds on the spores of fungi {Nanosella fungi) and is less then i/ioo inch in length. Italian fleas are commonly assumed to be the fleas par ex- cellence, though some maintain the Californian product is. Figs. 412-414. Grasshoppers. For explanations of the figures see pp. xxiii, Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - co
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, booksubjecti, booksubjectzoology
