1915 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 95 



wires of its cage to welcome her. When it is time for its bath, of which it is very 

 fond, she puts in her hand and it hops upon her finger and she places it in the 

 water. When it has been in long enough she again lends it her finger and lifts it 

 into its swing. There it shakes itself and preens its feathers till dry. 



To give it occupation its mistress scatters some grains of hemp on the bottom 

 of the cage. These are a great luxury. It turns its head sideways and gropes on 

 the floor with open bill, and not a grain escapes it. It knows when its seed and 

 water are changed and when a lump of sugar, a dandelion, a bunch of chickweed, 

 or a stalk of plantain is placed in the wires of the cage for its delectation. It 

 likes to be placed in the balcony where the busy twitter of the sparrows amuses it. 

 It carols all the day and at night-fall it climbs to its swing and rocks itself to 

 sleep. 



I will speak of only one other bird, the Euby-throated Humming Bird 

 (Trochilus colubris, Linn.). 



I found a nest of this bright and active little creature on a branch of a young 

 birch tree which overhung a mountain rivulet. The structure resembled a knot of 

 the tree and was covered with lichens and fragments of bark. From my station on 

 the bank of the stream I could look down into the nest and see the two tiny white 

 eggs. When the mother bird took her place on the nest the green of her upper 

 plumage harmonized with the tints of the nest and its surroundings and made its 

 disguise complete. 



The male bird is a bold, dashing little fellow. He comes before you — his 

 gorgeous breastplate flashing in the sun, and — presto ! he is gone ! 



For the gtiidance of these, and other dependents on its bounty, a beneficent 

 Providence hangs out gaily painted signs, to shew where stores of nectar may be 

 had, by the thirsty without cost. 



Insects. 



The insects are "in number numberless." Winn has given in his List — of 

 Quebec Lepidoptera only, the names of 1,191 species. Lest I should weary you, I 

 will confine my remarks to one genus only — that of Catocala — the beautiful 

 Underwings. 



The word Catocala is often pronounced in the Old Country Catocala. The 

 genius of the English language is to throw the accent back. We do not say Cata- 

 strophe but Catas'trophe — though this word is also from the Greek. 



The first Catocala I saw in Canada was in the maple wood on Mount Royal, 

 which I have mentioned. I thought at first that it was the rare English moth, 

 Catocala fraxini, Linn. — " the Clifden Nonpareil," but when it spread its wings I 

 saw that I was mistaken ; it had not the deep blue underwings of C. jraxini. It 

 was C. relicta, Walker—" the Eelict."* 



I found C. parta, Guenee — "the Mother,' to be plentiful in Brome. This 

 insect has scarlet underwings. 



C. concumbens, Walker — " the Sleepy One," which has fine magenta under- 

 wings, was also rather common in the same locality. 



C. cerogama, Guenee — " The Yellow-belted," I took on Cape Diamond, Quebec. 



The beautiful form of C. ilia, Cramer, viz. — C. osculata — " the Beloved " I 

 took in East Farnham, and there also I captured C. subnata, Grote — " the 

 Youthful." 



*The English names I use were those given by Holland, in his " Moth Book." 



