BULLETIN 39, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. [32] 



gravelly or stony bottoms. A suitable water net can readily be 

 made by using the frame of the beating net and attaching to it a rather 

 short bag of some coarse material, e. </., '< grass cloth," coarse inillinet. 



The mode of operation with this net is very sim 

 pie : if some insect is seen swimming in the water, 

 the net is carefully brought beneath the specimen, 

 which is thus lifted out of the water. Most water 

 insects are, however, not seen swimming about 



' " * bllt hide amid the various 



etc., or in the mud at the base of the plants, and 

 they can best be captured by dragging the net through these plants. 

 When taken from the water the net is more or less filled with mud and 

 parts of plants, and the water must be allowed to run out and the con- 

 tents of the net spread out on a cloth or on a flat stone, if such be at 

 hand. The insects are at first not readily seen, but 

 after a short while they begin to emerge from the 

 mud and crawl about, and can readily be taken up 

 with a forceps. 



\Viitcr Dip Net. The small water sieve, shown in 

 the accompanying illustration (Fig. 51), and some- 

 what resembling in appearance a jockey cap, is fre- 

 quently of service in collecting the larvae of aquatic ' '' 



insects, especially where it is necessary to scrape 



submerged stones or timbers. In use it is fastened on the end of a cane 



or stick, and can be easily made by any tinsmith. 



The Umbrella. The umbrella, as already stated, is one of the 

 most useful instruments of the collector, since it enables him to obtain all 

 those numerous insects which live on the branches of trees, on shrubs, 

 and on other large plants. A common stout cotton umbrella is suffi- 

 ciently large, but is liable to get out of joint, and moreover the speci- 

 mens hide themselves under the ribs. It is well, therefore, to have the 

 inside of such umbrella, lined along the ribs with muslin, or some other 

 material, preferably of a light color. An umbrella specially constructed 

 for entomological purposes is offered for sale by E. Deyrolle, in Paris. 

 It resembles a stoutly built common umbrella, but has the inside lined 

 with white linen and the handle has a joint near the middle, so that the 

 umbrella can be more conveniently held and more readily packed away. 

 The opened and inverted umbrella is held with the left hand under the 

 branch which the collector intends to relieve of its entomological in- 

 habitants, while the right hand, armed with a heavy stick, is free to 

 properly jar the branch. Care must be taken in the jarring, lest the 

 insects are knocked beyond the circumference of the umbrella. The 

 larger the umbrella the greater are the chances of making rich captures, 

 but the more difficult it becomes to manipulate, especially where tin- 

 woods are dense or where there are many vines, etc. In the absence of 

 an umbrella the butterfly net or the beating net can be used. 



