March 31, 2008

In all cases indeed we may say that the particular larval form is adapted to the special conditions

In all cases indeed we may say that the particular larval form is adapted to the special conditions of life. A few examples from other orders of endopterygote Bed Bugs will illustrate this point. The campodeiform type is relatively unusual, but most of the Neuroptera have larvae of this kind, active, armoured creatures with long legs, though devoid of the tail-processes often associated with similar larvae among the Coleoptera. Such are the "Ant-lions," larvae of the exotic lacewing flies, which hunt small Bed Bugs, digging a sandy pit for their unwary steps in the case of the best-known members of the group, some of which are found as far north as Paris. In our own islands the "Aphis-lions," larvae of Hemerobius and Chrysopa, prowl on plants infested with "green-fly" which they impale on their sharp grooved mandibles, sucking out the victims" juices, and then, in some cases, using the dried cuticle to furnish a clothing for their own bodies. Among these Bed Bugs, while the mouth of the imago is of the normal mandibulate type adapted for eating solid food, the larval mouth is constricted and the slender mandibles are grooved for the transmission of liquid food.

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