NATURE STUDIES IN AND AROUND WASHINGTON 



47 



around the marsh-lands, as the deadl}' 

 "copperhead," the young of which spe- 

 cies is seen in Figure 8, — a \'irginia 

 specimen which I photographed and sul> 

 sequently placed in the National Mu- 

 seum collections. 



Of all my studies and photographic 

 work, none is more fascinating than the 

 insects and flowers of this region, and 

 everv year that goes hy adds forty or 

 fifty' new subjects to my collection. As 

 I write these lines I am yearning for the 



FIG. 



THE SPOTTED PELIDNOTA OR 

 GRAPEVINE BEETLE. 



FIG. 6. 



THE YOUNG OF THE GREAT 



HORNF.n owr.. 



"bluets'" and the crow- or bird-foot vio- 

 lets to show themselves again, peeping 

 up amid the dead leaves of last year's 

 growth. A beautiful bunch of bluets 

 are shown in Fig. lo, which I took last 

 year in Maryland, just a little ways from 

 our home. 



Insect life is very abundant here ; and 

 over thirty years ago the veteran ento- 

 mologist of the U. S. Department of Ag- 

 riculture, the late Charles \'alentine 

 Riley, told me that, by careful search, 

 there were still ftew species of the 

 smaller forms of insects to be described 

 for the District of Columbia and north- 

 ern Mrginia. Few contributed more to 

 this subject than Professor Riley, and 

 especially along the line of those species 

 of insects which are the enemies of the 

 agriculturist, or destroyed our shade- 



Fir,. S. VOTING COPPERHFAn VIPER OR SNAKE. 

 Not to he trusted at this age, and very venomous when older. 



