The Sully County watchman. (Clifton, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1894, 1891-11-28
FOSSIL INSECTS.
Curious Bugs which have been preserved
In Rocks Millions Of yea-s.

4
In Rocks Millions OF years.
DECIDEDLY the most interestir z exhibit al
the international congress IF geoN> yists
recently was collection CT fossil insscts
that is said to be the most complete in
existence.
1t seems wonderful that so fragile, SO
minute and so easily destroyed as mere in.
sects should have been preserved in rocks
for millions upon millions of wears in such
perfection that the very hairs which fringe
The wings of certain very small varieties
are visible to-day beneath the lenses of the
microscope.
Imbeded in the scraps of stone which
make up the collection referred to are to be
seen the fossilized forms of all the princi.
pal species that fly and crawl at the pre-.
sent time. In this shape are found the
entombed remains of an ancient host, so
| varied in structure and so closely resembl-
| ing their de cendants of this century that
they may be said to include practically
every group in the range of the insect
world as it is now known.
To the imagination they repopulate the
past with buzzing swarms. affording evil
dence by their variety and the surprising
numbers in which their remnants are
found of the fact that anciently all sorts
of bugs, obnoxious and otherwise, were
vastly more plentiful than now.
In fact there were numerous kinds in the
early days of creation which have since
vanished from the earth.
| This was even SO late, comparatively
speaking, as few hundred thousand
years ago, during what is called the ter
tiary epoch. At chat period there was a
shallow lake in little Colorado valley
near Pixies Peak, which is overlooked by
mountain known modernly as Gooaz
Butte, through designated by miners as
Slim jim.
| Streams into which insects fell carried
them to the lake, which has since vanish
ed They were buried beneath layers OF
volcanic sand and ASH which fell into the
lake from some neigaboring eruption, be.
ing thus preserved, so that now geologists
dig out their fossils with pickaxe and
hammer.
One little hill. which was formerly an
island bearing to this day the erect trunks
OF giant petr fed sequio trees, has been
found mine of these bugs of antiquity.
Buried in the ancient rock are mosqui.
toes and gnats in abundance. There are
gnats of the kind that feed upon toadstools
and other fungi, rubber flies" big and
predatory; bees and wasps OF many varie
ties, ants of all sorts, ichneumon flies and
saw flies. OF butterflies there are few
and of moths any quantity, the latter be
iLg mostly of the leaf roller description
which wrap thems elves up in leaves fol
protection, while caterpillars feed on the
substance of the leafs inside, and when
the provender is exhausted roll the leaf a
little more, fastening it each time neatly
with silken band. Likewise flies resem.
bling the horsehy are discovered, and fire,
! flies also.
OF fossil beetles the variety is endless.
There are ground beetles. water beetles.
June bugs, blister beetles. such as b.isters
are made out for sick people, seed weavils,
snout beetles, with long probosces, buffalo
bugs that have since become terror tc
housekeepers, carrion beetles, lady bugs
and meal worms, which feed on decayine
vegetation for lack of meal to eat. Also
''click beetles. otherwise known as skip,
| ping jacks which jump anH make d
clicking noise when laid on their backs.
Dragon flies there are, two, and it should
not be forgotten to mention the gall flies
the females of which lay their eggs in the
bark of trees and other plants, depositing
at the same time poison that causes an
| abnormal growth of vegetable tissue, use
full to the newly Matched young for food
and to man for ink and various medicines
Washington Star.