Texas Nature Observations and Reminiscenses Page: 67
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TEXAS NATURE OBSERVATIONS AND REMINISCENCES. 67
the bat is an insect destroyer. In
the year 1889 Captain Reichards
of D'Hanis, himself an academic
zoologist of the old school and
close observer of Texas nature ob-
jects, had sent to the writer sev-
eral samples of the bat guano
gathered from the large bat caves
of Frio County, for a closer micro-
scopic examination, and I pre-
pared for his own satisfaction,
about ten photo microscopic views
of the guano. These views re-
vealed throughout extensively
remnants of predigested insects
of various variety, but mostly
remnants of gnats, mosquitoes,
flies, moths, spiders and beetles.
In most of the microscopic slides
examined the multiprisms of in-
sect eyes, mostly of gnats, mos-
quitoes, flies and beetles, could be
seen. There were no vegetable tis-
sues present. The scales of moths
and smaller insects were numer-
ous, as also remnants of insect
legs and the body shields, claws,
parts of antenae, etc., of various
insects.
It is thus shown conclusively
that that little "obnoxious" look-
ing mammal- the bat-is a very
useful insect destroyer.
Finally attention may be called
to an insect among insect killers.,
-the dragon fly, or mosquito
hawk. This is another sanitary
scavenger in its way, as it feeds on
smaller insects such as mosquitoes
and gnats, of which the banks of
rivulets and tanks and other wa-
tering places abound, especially
like out at West End Lake or at
Mitchell's Lake, south of San An-
tonio, where there is a large sur-
face of water surrounded with
plenty of vegetation. Here mil-
lions of the mosquito hawks can
he seen in all forms and colors
and of all Oenera. Some are beau-
tifully striped and all are a lively
set of insects, and, by reason of
their sharp eye sight, hard to catch.
In its larval state the dragon
fly has always been an interestingstudy to naturalists. The female
insect deposits her eggs in masses
-up to a hundred eggs. She gen-
erally hovers a considerable time
over a certain favored water place
-often over a small, stagnating
and well demarcated pool of water
near an outlet of some creek, tank
or lake, rapidly dipping the apex
of her abdomen into the water,
when her eggs gravitate to the
bottom of the water. Many ob-
servers also have seen them creep
along the stem of a water plant
into the water and thus lay their
eggs on the bottom. When ma-
tured the peculiarly shaped larvae,
after several shedding processes,
creep outside the water and ad-
here to the stem of a plant or tree,
and after further development, the
young dragon fly gradually creeps
through an opening in the upper
aperture of its primary anatomy
or hull-first with its head parts,
then the front feet and ultimately
with its entire body, and always to
a curved position of its body. Its
wings are now very delicate, but
they soon dry entirely, when they
swiftly fly in search of their in-
sect food.
The small minnow fish, fully
described elsewhere is also a
great enemy to the eggs of the
dragon fly, as well as those of the
mosquito and other aquatic in-
sects. To Dr. Campbell the
writer is indebted for a sample of
the dragon fly eggs, of which I
prepared several microscopic
views, showing the delicate long
and oval shaped eggs highly mag-
nified-normally not being larger
than the size of a flea.
The wings and the head of a
dragon fly with its proportianate-
yl1 enormous eye globes and the
mouth marts of this insect are an
interesting study, the latter being
sulied with strong, serrated man-
dibles, with which they grab and
chew their insect victims, and also
the eye capsule is a most interest-
ing object under the microscope.
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Menger, R. Texas Nature Observations and Reminiscenses, book, 1913; San Antonio, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth143558/m1/71/?q=menger: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting University of Texas Health Science Center Libraries.