36 MR. A. J. T. JAXSE : HOW TO COLLECT AXD 



collection will be one of the building stones helping to erect 

 the beautiful palace of Science. 



My present aim is to instruct my readers in the scientific 

 methods of collecting and in the preserving of a fine group 

 of insects. I hope to enable some collectors to improve their 

 collections, and I hope that those who have an inclination 

 towards the study of butterflies and moths, but think its 

 methods too intricate, Avill find them sufficiently simple to 

 adopt at once the methods advocated. Naturally I shall be 

 very pleased to give any further information required, and 

 also to identify Lepidoptera for any readers wdio experience 

 difficulty in their study of this group. 



Apparatus required for Collecting. 



The Net. — For collecting in daytime, the net is perhaps 

 the most important instrument required, and it often depends 

 largely on how the net is made and how it is used whether 

 the collector will bring much home or not. Nets may be 

 bought from dealers, but with a little expense and trouble, 

 a good net may ])e made by any collector.- To do this, make 

 a rino- of w^ire as shown in fio-. 1. This should be about 

 twenty inches in diameter, and galvanized iron wire about 

 one quarter of an inch thick should be used. When made, 

 the ring should be fixed by its straight ends into a hole that 

 has been drilled into one end of a light but strong stick some 

 tliirty-six inches long. By using a thinner wire of steel a 

 lighter net is secured. Some collectors prefer a stick much 

 longer than three feet ; but personal experience has taught 

 me not only that a longer stick makes precision of movement 

 less certain, but :ilso that when collecting in betw^een trees, 

 a net with a long handle is most difficult to use. The next 

 step is to sew on to the mounted ring a strip of cloth, about 

 two inches wide and of the same colour selected for the net. 

 The net itself should be a cylindrical bag with a rounded 

 bottom and needs to be sufficiently long so as to fold over 

 the ring at lea-;t twice. It should b(^ of not too coarse a 

 gauze ; mosquito netting serves very well as long as it is 

 dyed a light green colour. It is to be remembered that a 



