THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



Some Insects Need Protection. 



BY ESTHER M. CUNNINGHAM, WORCESTER, 

 MASSACHUSETTS. 



There is a need for insect protection 

 as well as for bird protection. Butterflies 

 and moths are becoming- scarcer each 

 year. The milkweed butterfly, once our 

 commonest large butterfly, is now rare. 

 It is entirely harmless, its food plant being 

 the milkweed for which we do not care. 

 Other butterflies and moths are disappear- 

 ing. There are several reasons for this. 

 The first is the brown-tail spray. While 

 trying to kill the pests, I fear that we are 

 destroying the harmless and useful in- 

 sects. To kill the brown-tailed moths the 

 trees are sprayed with poison. The cater- 

 pillar eats this poison and dies. The 

 brown-tailed and gypsy moths are fast 

 disappearing. We hear pleasing stories 

 of their decrease, but are not our harmless 

 insects going at the same time ? Another 

 cause for the decrease is ignorance. Many 

 of us, when we see a cocoon or a caterpil- 

 lar, say: "There is one of those dreadful 

 creatures ; kill it !" Every cocoon and 

 caterpillar should not be destroyed in the 

 belief that it contains a gypsy moth, a 

 brown-tailed moth or other nuisance. 

 Butterflies and moths have natural ene- 

 mies. Ichneumon flies attack many spe- 

 cies. Birds devour great numbers. These 

 enemies tend to keep insects within rea- 

 sonable limits, but with our enmity added 

 these creatures have little chance. Many 

 insects are entirely harmless, and some 

 are lovely. We Americans should not be- 

 come so practical that we shall lose these 

 beautiful and inspiring creatures. Our 

 beautiful night moths are often consid- 

 ered a nuisance ; they are especially sub- 

 ject to attack from the ichneumon fly. 

 They are so large, too, that they are con- 

 spicuous and so are subject to the attack 

 of birds. For these reasons, they can 

 never become dangerous. Their food is 

 the foliage of the forest trees. The loss 



of a few of these leaves cannot harm us. 

 Many persons beheve that all moths are 

 clothes moths; the clothes moth is indeed 

 a nuisance, but other moths will not eat 

 woolen cloth. Numberless flowers are 

 fertilized by the aid of moths and butter- 

 flies. Many flowers depend upon one 

 kind of moth for their life; if the moth 

 disappears the flower will disappear. Hawk 

 moths are especially adapted to the work 

 of fertilization on account of their long 

 tongue. The tomato worm moth is the 

 commonest of this group. Although this 

 is considered a nuisance, it is rare and 

 does little harm. It too is subject to attack 

 from the ichneumon fly. There are other 

 kinds of flies that scatter pollen. The 

 chief of such insects, however, are bees. 

 Many of us do not realize how much de- 

 pends on these insects. Take an example 

 from Australia. Red clover was planted 

 for the use of the cattle. The first year 

 it grew abundantly, but the next year it 

 failed. The people blamed the climate. A 

 naturalist solved the problem by planting 

 more red clover and at the same time in- 

 troducing numerous bumblebees. After 

 this, the clover crop was immense. Our 

 farmers in America would regret to lose 

 their clover, but they would lose it if the 

 bumblebees should disappear. These 

 creatures are becoming less numerous. 

 Dragon flies are useful, because their 

 chief food is mosquitoes. Our common 

 ladybugs make way with plant lice ; 

 spiders eat flies ; many insects help us in 

 their individual ways. As President 

 Lincoln once said : "Let us give the bug 

 a chance." 



The New York Agricvdtural Experi- 

 ment Station at Geneva is paying spec- 

 ial attention to the study of grapes. Its 

 vineyards now contain 350 native var- 

 ieties, 50 foreign, and 800 crosses, all 

 in bearing. In addition about 1,600 

 self-seedlings and 3,500 crosses have 

 not yet come to fruit. 



