They are found of all sizes, suitable to the various insects they are parasitic upon, and in their ceaseless rummaging about in every hole and corner, millions of destructive larvæ are discovered and destroyed by them, which would otherwise have reached maturity, and left a progeny to renew their ravages in the ensuing summer. Even those larvæ which feed in concealment are readily discovered by the Ichneumons destined to live upon them, and the farmer is often made aware of the presence of his enemies by observing the activity of his friends.
THE LABOURING AND SOLDIER ANT.
(Formica rufa.)
The colour of the Ant is in general a dark red or brown, with a fine gloss on the abdomen. They are like the bees, divided into three kinds—males, females, and neuters. The females and neuters are furnished with stings for their defence; the males are wholly destitute of them. The males and females are in proper season furnished with wings, but the neuters have none, and they are doomed always to labour and drudgery on the hill. This hill is constructed with considerable art and labour; it is composed of leaves, bits of wood, sand, earth, and gum from the trees, which are all united into a mass, perforated with galleries to give access to the numerous cells which it contains. From this hill there are several paths, worn by the constant passing and repassing of these creatures; and it is worthy the admiration of the naturalist to consider how busy the whole legion appears in bringing bits of straw, dead bodies of other insects, or in carrying away their eggs, if any danger threatens their republic. Their sense of smell is very keen, and they discover at a great distance any food they may be in search of.
Order VI. Lepidoptera. The Moths and Butterflies.
The insects included in this order are all remarkable for their beauty. Their wings are membranous and veined, like those of the dragon flies and their allies, but instead of being naked they are covered by close-set scales of the most delicate texture and most brilliant colours. The mouth is furnished with a spiral trunk or tongue, by which nectar is sucked from the flowers; but in other respects it only differs from the mouths of the masticating mandibulated orders in the smallness of its parts. The antennæ vary in the different kinds: but those of all the diurnal lepidoptera, or butterflies, are terminated by a small inflation or knob; while those of the nocturnal species, or moths, taper to a point, and are often feathery, or comb-shaped. The transformations of the species belonging to this order are all complete.