482 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XV. 



The collecting of insects has always been such a universally popular branch 

 of natural history, and we have had so many really eminent entomologists 

 amongst our members, that it is somewhat disappointing to find they are not 

 better represented in our collections taken all round. Of Lepidoptera we have 

 good representative collections of the families of butterflies containing the 

 larger species — the gaps being nearly all rare species found only in outlying parts 

 of the country. In the "Blues" {Lycaemdce) and the " Skippers " (Hesperiadoe) 

 we are decidedly weak. Our principal contributors have been Colonel Swinhoe, 

 Mr. Aitken, Lieutenant (now Colonel) Warnford and Mr. Watson in time past and 

 latterly Lieutenant Evans and Captain Burton. Of moths we have s very miserable 

 collection, except in a few genera containing large species, and they are prac- 

 tically all without any record of locality. Of Hymenoptera there is a fairly good 

 collection of ants — mainly contributed by Mr. Wroughton — but in bees and 

 wasps we are very weak, while of Diptsra (flies, &c.) we have practically 

 none whatever except the mosquitos lately contributed by Mr. Aitken and 

 Captain Lyston. We once had the chance of obtaining a collection of Diptera 

 through Mr. Wroughton, containing some 2,000 specimens, but as there was 

 no one to take them in hand he felt that they would only be wasted if left in our 

 charge and so they were sent home. This is a typical instance of what we miss 

 if our collections are not properly taken care of. In Coleoptera (beetles) and 

 all the other orders we have a lot of work before us, except in the case of the 

 Orthoptera and RhyncTiota, which are probably fairly representative though 

 not good collections. What we want most, in order to make our collections 

 of insects of use to members, are moths and more particularly small ones — in 

 fact, the smaller the better. As Mr. Young is himself working up the Ortlwp- 

 tera, Dragon flies, May flies, Stone flies and White Ants, any contributions 

 of these will be very acceptable. 



Regarding the lower invertebrates, I must cut things short. We have a fair 

 number of both spirit and dried specimens of crustaceans and some uice corals, 

 which latter were named for us by Dr. Bassett Smith, but as we have been 

 without an officer to take charge of this department for a number of years past 

 there is plenty of work for anyone if we can only find the right man to take it 

 up. 



In the botanical department we have a very complete and properly arranged 

 collection of the Bombay flora, presented to us by Mr. Woodrow, but of fungi, 

 lichens and seaweeds I believe we have none. 



A geological collection has never been undertaken, although there are a 

 certain number of specimens stowed away in different corners. This, however, 

 is a department that might well be taken in hand with advantage. 



In conclusion, let me again appeal to all members to do their best to get their 

 friends to realise what I have tried to prove to you, viz., that our museum 

 collections are not by any means what they ought to be, and that the only way 

 to hope to improve them is by finding members who will take some one 

 department under their special charge. 



