Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1916-10-05
Some Living Artillery
Defense Which Nature Has Furnished to
Animals, Inse cts and Plants

d, BILE Of striking its victim at a distance of
l to 1-2 meters e to feet).
| Besides this cold-blooded sharpshooter
| we may find a prototype Of the trench
! fighter in the animal world. This curl
Gus insect, the ant-lion-known to Amer
lean children as the "doodle-bug''-is the
| fat and greedy larva of a graceful and
| lovely long-winged insect somewhat like
| a dragon fly in appearance, whise en-
! Genealogical name Is the myrmelcon for
| micarius. The larva Is 8 to 10 millime-
| tiers in length $40 to 4-10 inch). 1t digs
a small funnel-shaped cavity in the sand,
burying itself at the apex, with only its
| head emerging. Here it INDUCES in the
| pastime Of watchful waiting until some
| hasty and incautious ant or other tiny
| insect passes too near the edge of the
| cavity and begins to slip down Its
treacherous slope. Instantly the Turk
| ing brigand below begins to throw a
shower Of grains of sand at It's predes-
tined victim, preventing 1t from climb
ing out. and confusing or binding it so
| that 1t falls within reach Of the power
full curved mandibles Of the lurking lion
below. which then draws 1t down to suck
out its juices at it's leisure The broad
head Of the ant-lion is provided with a
cavity which enables it to be used like
a shovel.
Other insects Of their larvae have the
| power of emitting jets of offensive or
, irritating liquid Thus the fat, flesh
colored or brownish caterpillar of the
willow-butterfiy (Cossus ligniperda)
when threatened by an enemy sends out
Prov
fluid to a distance of SO or 60 centime-
tiers GO to "a inches). This Juice" is
strongly irritant and Of such peculiarly
penetrating odor that a person familiar
with the smell can detect it at a con-
siderable distance even when the crea-
ture Is merely feeding quietly in the
wood. Other larvae including that of
the black waterchafer (Hydrophilas)
various species of the death" chafers
(e. g., Blaps mortisaga), and of several
OF the Silphidae, eject the secretion of
the anal glands to quite distance when
| irritated.
There are many examples also among
mature insects Of the election of an Of
fensive fluid to repel or brighten intrud-
ers. Ants. for example, not only bite or
sting, but actually spray an acid at their
foes. Says DR.. Damn: IF one knocks
on the hill Of the red woods ant (For-
mica rufa). the animals rush forth like
| men from houses at the thrill of an
| earthquake. Then one sees the running
creatures suddenly halt and curve the
abdomen upward. Directly one perceives
hundreds of tiny jets of liquid rise in
the air to height Of 20 to 80 cent?
meters 6 to II inches). These consist
or poisonous antacid (formic acid) whose
| purpose Is to drive the disturber away."
Even more curious is the power pos
sessec by many grasshoppers to squirt
! blood from the joints of their limbs
| "hen IN danger. In the Algerian sne-
cies, Engaster gayoni. Vosseler~ observed
| colorless blood exuding from an OPEN
| ing on the upper side of the leg A spe-
clal muscle opens this aperture at the
moment of danger The author OBJ
served that such grasshoppers were. in
fact. avoided by reptiles.
| Another insect capable Of making him
Sel1 as disagreeable in his way and for
MS size as the skunk itself is the "bom-
bardeer' chafer, or Brachinus creni+ans
! a tiny creature scarcely centimetar IN
length "a inch). When alarmed II vic
lently elects from the anal glands a drop
OF liquid The elected dron exn,oao,
like bomb and has an extraordir.ri,,.
alarming effect on the pursuer. In tho
| older geological books the tbeorv v,ot.
advanced that these drops contained
..luiu phosphorus hydrite CP2 HI.
"hlch is spontaneously inflammabIa. -
"eoiared that a faint flash was al
ways to be seen. But later investig.-
luis, uo not support this theory. The
'e'ioh mas an acid reaction, and its
ouofs resembles that of nitric acid. On
."e human skin 1t causes itching and
burning and leaves yellow or brown
sPechs bombardeer liquids are a,so
piouuceo by various of the Paussidaa
among the chafers; according TO tho In
designations of Loman and Escherich
| 'hey contain free iodine" Tho aho,,.
auo'atlon is from DR.. Damn. Mr. Con-
pm also speaks at some length of tho
! "oinoardeer and other Brachinas ~
| Witch there are several species ,na
"iiich ne was pursuing, saying: "It che,
! itto my eye jet of corrosive ,io,id 50
po"erru vi that the resultant main nor
sisted Tor several days and finally caus
Gu part OF the skin Of my eyelid to n.o,
off" 'eiu 70 peel
hlsnly novel expedient for discour-
aging intrusion is the peculiar faci,ity
OF the Holothuria, cucumber shansd VOL
a'i'es or the star-fsh and sea-urchin
.or hurting a large part of their own
.n'es'lnes at the intruder. The intes.
ines splits at the rectum wall and also
'is peioW the gullet. Then. bv >
! muscular contraction, the SEN
i".eu intestine is flung through tho
! ''0'ai aperture. Truly desperate
| means OF defense. 1t reminds one 80
samson pulling down the pillars Of tho
! temple to his own destruction &c MY,
! as that Of his foes. However. these -,
! We sea creatures are more fortunate e..
! 'hev calmly set to work to grow na,,
ihs'oes' and accomplish the feat in :
comparatively short time ACCORDING -
semper. the Holothuria scabra renen.s
us intestine in nine days. but No,1 d.
| ciares that an animal which has al,os+
completely dfsemboweled itself IN 49,,
manner may need as much as IN a.,,s
ior complete recuperation.
Strangest of all animal nro;eo.,,..
perhaps. Is the arrow to be founa =.
certain seasons In the 1ung-breathine
land snails. to which the ordinary VIM,
yard snail belongs We c,,..