[] It would be endless to specify the various Species of Insects, that have their Generation in the Waters. And therefore I shall only observe of them, 1. That their Eggs are always laid up with great Care, and in good Order. And also, 2. Where proper and sufficient Food is. 3. That in their Nympha-State in the Waters, they have Parts proper for Food and Motion; and in many, or most of them, very different from what they have in their Mature-State, a manifest Argument of the Creator’s Wisdom and Providence. For an Instance, see [Note (r).]
[c] As Seigneur Redi was one of the first that made it his Business to discard Anomalous Generation, so he tried more Experiments relating to the Vermination of Serpents, Flesh, Fish, putrified Vegetables; and in short, whatever was commonly known to be the Nursery of Maggots, more I say probably, than any one hath done since. And in all his Observations, he constantly found the Maggots to turn to Aureliæ, and these into Flies. But then, saith he, Dubitare cœpi, utrùm omne hoc vermium in carne genus, ex solo Muscarum semine, an ex ipsis putrefactis carnibus oriretur, tantoque magis confirmabar in hoc meo dubio, quanto in omnibus generationibus——sapiùs videram, in carnibus, antequàm verminare inciperent, resedisse ejusdem speciei Muscas, cujus propago postea nascebatur. Upon this he tells us, he put Fish, Flesh, &c. into Pots, which he covered close from the Flies with Paper, and afterwards (for the free Air sake) with Lawn, whilst other Pots were left open, with such like Flesh, &c. in them; that the Flies were very eager to get into the covered Pots; and that they produced not one Maggot, when the open ones had many. Fr. Redi de Gener. Insect.
Among the Insects that come from the Maggots he mentions, he names Culices. Now from the most critical Observations I have made, I never observed any sort of Gnat to come from putrified Flesh, Vegetables, or any other Thing he taxeth with them. So that either he means by Culex, some Fly that we call not by the Name of Gnat; or else their Gnats in Italy, vary in their Generation from ours in England. For among above 30, near 40 distinct Species of Gnats that I have observed about the Place where I live, I never found any to lay their Eggs in Flesh, Filth, &c. but the largest Sort, called by Aldrovand, Culices maximi, by Swammerdam, Tipulæ terrestres, lay their Eggs in Meadows, &c. under the Grass; one of the larger middle Sort, in dead Beer, Yeast, &c. lying on the Tops, or in the Leaks of Beer-Barrels, &c. and all the rest (as far as ever I have observed) lay and hatch in the Waters, as in [Note (r).]
The Generation of the Second of these being akin to some of the foregoing instances, and a little out of the way, may deserve a Place here. This Gnat lays its Eggs commonly in dead Beer, &c. as I said, and probably in Vinegar, and other such Liquors. Some Time after which, the Maggots are so numerous, that the whole Liquor stirreth as if it was alive; being full of Maggots, some larger, some smaller; the larger are the off-spring of our Gnat, the smaller, of a small dark coloured Fly, tending to reddish; frequent in Cellars, and such obscure Places. All these Maggots turn to Aurelia, the larger of which, of a Tan-Colour, such as our Gnat. This Gnat is of the unarmed Kind, having no Spear in its Mouth. Its Head is larger than of the common Gnats, a longer Neck, short jointed Antennæ, spotted Wings, reaching beyond its slender Alvus; it is throughout of a brown Colour, tending to red, especially in the Female: The chief Difference between the Male and Female, is (as in other Gnats, yea, most Insects) the Male is less than the Female, and hath a slenderer Belly, and its Podex not so sharp as the Female’s is.
[d] The Insects that infest Fruits, are either of the Ichneumon-Fly Kind, or Phalænæ. Plums, Pease, Nuts, &c. produce some or other Ichneumon-Fly. That generated in the Plum is black, of a middle Size, its Body near ³⁄₁₀ Inch long, its Tail not much less, consisting of three Bristles, wherewith it conveys its Eggs into Fruits: Its Antennæ, or Horns, long, slender, recurved; its Belly longish, tapering, small towards the Thorax; Legs reddish; Wings membranaceous, thin and transparent, in Number 4, which is one Characteristic of the Ichneumon Fly.
The Pease Ichneumon-Fly, is very small, Wings large, reaching beyond the Podex; Antennæ long; Alvus short, shaped like an Heart, with the Point towards the Anus; it walketh and flieth slowly. No Tail appears as in the former; but they have one lieth hidden under the Belly, which they can at Pleasure bend back to pierce Pease when they are young and tender, and other Things also, as I have Reason to suspect, having met with this (as indeed the former two) in divers Vegetables.
Pears and Apples I could never discover any Thing to breed in, but only the lesser Phalæna, about ⁴⁄₁₀ Inch long, whitish underneath; greyish brown above (dappled with brown Spots, inclining to a dirty Red) all but about a third Part at the End of the Wings, which is not grey, but brown, elegantly striped with wavey Lines, of a Gold Colour, as if gilt; its Head is small, with a Tuft of whitish brown in the Forehead; Antennæ smooth, moderately long. The Aurelia of this Moth is small, of a yellowish brown. I know not what Time they require for their Generation out of Boxes; but those I laid up in August, did not become Moths before June following.
[e] There are many of the Phalænæ and Ichneumon-Fly Tribes, that have their Generation on the Leaves or other Parts of Trees and Shrubs, too many to be here reckoned up. The Oak hath many very beautiful Phalænæ, bred in its convolved Leaves, white, green, yellow, brown spotted prettily, and neatly dappled, and many more besides; and its Buds afford a Place for Cases, and Balls of various Sorts, as shall be shewn hereafter; its Leaves expanded, minister to the Germination of globular, and other sphæroidal Balls, and flat Thecæ, some like Hats, some like Buttons excavated in the Middle, and divers others such like Repositories, all belonging to the Ichneumon-Fly Kind. And not only the Oak, but the Maple also, the White-Thorn, the Briar, Privet, and indeed almost every Tree and Shrub.
[f] And as Trees and Shrubs, so Plants have their peculiar Insects. The White-Butterfly lays its voracious Offspring on Cabbage-Leaves; a very beautiful reddish ocellated one, its no less voracious black Off-spring of an horrid Aspect, on the Leaves of Nettles; as also doth a very beautiful, small, greenish Ichneumon-Fly, in Cases on the Leaves of the same Plant: And to name no more (because it would be endless) the beautiful Ragwort-Moth, whose upper Wings are brown, elegantly spotted with red and underwings edged with brown; these, I say, provide for their golden ring’d Eruce upon the Ragwort-Plant.
[g] Many, if not most Sort of Birds, are infested with a distinct Kind of Lice, very different from one another in Shape, Size, &c. For Figures and Descriptions of them, I shall refer to Signieur Redi of Insects. See also Moufet, L. 2. c. 23. These Lice lay their Nits among the Feathers of the respective Birds, where they are hatched and nourished; and as Aristotle saith, would destroy the Birds, particularly Pheasants, if they did not dust their Feathers. Loco infr. citat.