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A HISTORY OF THE CHANGES OF INSECTS FROM THE EGG TO THE PERFECT BEING.
THE COMMITTEE OF GENERAL LITERATURE AND EDUCATION,
SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE;
GREAT QUEEN STREET, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS,
Chapter I.--_The Nest._--The Microscope and Telescope--Terror caused by Insects--Death-watch--Life-boat of Eggs--The Water Beetle--Floating Ark of Eggs--The Gnat--her difficulties--her Egg-raft--The Sand-boring Wasp--Towers of rubbish--Captive Caterpillars--Wood-boring Bee--An Insect Nursery--Escape of the young--Tapestry Bee--A Nest lined with Poppy-flower Petals--Enchanted Leaf-tubes--The spell broken--The Insect Sorcerer--Nest of Down made by a Moth--The Lackey Moth--The Ichneumons--Their usefulness 1
Chapter II.--_Structure and contents of the Egg._--Its Shape--Remarkable mistake about an Insect--The Lace-wing Fly--Eggs carved on their surface--Colours of Eggs--Changes of Colour--Eggs of the Garden Spider--Pretty Nests--Anatomy of the Egg--Contents of the Egg 43
Chapter III.--_Life begins in the Egg._--Spring Time--Influence of Heat and Cold--Eggs resist great Cold--The time of Hatching--Escape of the new Creature--Connexion between Plants and Insects--Changes in the Egg--A Spider's Mother's love--Experiment with two Spiders--Anecdote of an Earwig--Enormous number of Eggs of different Insects 57
Chapter I.--_The Young Larva._--Affection of a Field-Bug--An Earwig Mother--Anecdote of a Spider--Ant-Nurses--Varieties of Larvæ--The Larva born--Forms of Larvæ--Larvæ of Butterflies--Structure of a Larva 79
Chapter II.--_Habits of the Larva._--The Lion of the Aphides--its Courage--The Ant-Lion--The "Giant Grim" of Insects--Formation of its Trap--An Insect Excavator--The Den--A Stone in it--A captive Ant--Principle of Compensation--The Sand-Wasp's Den--A Warrior-Wasp--An Insect Duel--The Kakerlac and the Bandit Wasp--The Corpse carried home--A Wasp clad in the Wings and Limbs of Insects--The Tiger Beetle Larva--Dragon-Fly Larva--its curious Mask--a ferocious creature--Ravages of Cockchafer Larvæ--Lamp Oil got from Larvæ--"Old Father Long-legs"--The Gamma Moth and its Larva--Magical Origin of--The excessive numbers of the Larvæ--Destruction of Trees by Larvæ--Killed by rain--The Weevil--Insects on board Ship--Appetite of Larvæ--Silk-Worm Larva--Larvæ enormous Eaters--Growth of Larvæ 93