The Origin and fate of the Membranes surrounding the Grasshopper Egg; together with some Experiments on the Source of the Hatching Enzyme

Abstract

ABSTRACT Campbell (1929) and Jahn (1935 a, 1935 5, 1936) have recently investigated the chemical and physical properties of several of the egg coverings of Melanoplus differentia li s. A detailed account of the formation, structure, and fate of the membranes surrounding the acridian egg is, however, still lacking. Observations already in the literature are incomplete and frequently contradictory (Meissner, 1855; Leuckart, 1855; Riley, Packard, and Thomas, 1877; Korschelt, 1887; Uvarov, 1928; McNabb, 1928; Nelsen, 1931, 1934a, 19345; Husain and Roonwal, 1933; Slifer and King, 1934; Roonwal, 1936). In the first part of the present paper an attempt has been made to follow the history of the egg coverings from the time of their formation to the time when the young insect hatches.