1865.] 39 



or pursue it from the simple love of coutemplating Creation's wouders, or whether 

 we have au eye merely to quantity and quality of ' specimens,' it is in either case 

 an equally profitable employment. 



MANAGEMENT — CugeS. 



The first thought which probably strikes the collector is that Nature herself 

 must be the best nurse, and that to follow her will therefore be the summum honum 

 of breeding ; but, though for truthful natural histories and accurate records of the . 

 oeconomy of insects Nature undoubtedly presents the proper field for observation, 

 experience demonstrates how few individuals (comparatively to the number of eggs), 

 under ordinary natural surrounding conditions, attain the perfect or even chrysalis 

 state ; for it must be borne in mind that to an all-wise end Nature destroys just 

 so many as die, directly or indirectly, from atmospheric causes, such as cold, heat, 

 wet, drought, wind, &c., as well as from the attacks of natui'al enemies and the 

 rest ; so that the natural state then, even if it were applicable, would be dis- 

 advantageous for the purposes of the larva-rearer. 



Of the semi-artificial plans, that which comes nearest to the natural state of 

 things is, perhaps, the adoption of a green-house, or other apartment, in which our 

 cares feed openly on growing plants, and thus, if sashes and doors be kept well 

 closed, many enemies, such as birds, mice, wasps, and large Ichneumons, are kept 

 at bay, though centipedes, woodlice, spiders, Acari, earwigs, Tinese, ants, small 

 Ichneumons, parasitic Diptera, and other jDlagues, still gain admittance ; besides — 

 the chances of wandering larvae meeting with death by starvation, mutilation, or 

 suffocation are, to say the least, very considerable, the temperature must, in many 

 cases, be objectionable : and, owing to want of accuracy, this plan must be all but 

 useless for descriptive purposes. For such larvae, however, as are large and stick 

 closely to their food, it affords the most agreeable and convenient means for obser- 

 vation, short of the natural state itself. 



Another attempt to follow nature is to confine the larvae, together with a 

 bunch or branch of the growing food, within a sleeve of gauze or leno ; but, 

 however perfect in theory the plan may appear, in practice the ill effects of a 

 shower of rain or storm of wind are very painfully perceptible, in addition to 

 which nothing — absolutely nothing is gained, facility of observation is all but lost, 

 the trouble of feeding is not overcome, and security is not attained, for the cage so 

 formed is pretty sure to be rent by inevitable rotting and decay, torn by the wind 

 or by the collector in the changing process, gnawed by mice, earwigs, or even by 

 the enclosed larvae themselves, to say nothing of the whole concern being carried 

 off bodily by inquisitive or acquisitive biped. 



Cages, or prisons which, while they more or less restrict the liberty of the 

 occupants within, also serve to protect them from the attacks of enemies without, 

 &c., are the more confessedly artificial appliances which come under our considera- 

 tion ; of these 1 here enumerate a few of the more prominent, glancing at the 

 principles involved in their construction. 



First, the old-fashioned safe-like breeding cage, composed of a wooden frame- 

 work, and having the top, sides, and doors covered with either muslin (canvas), 

 wire-gauze, glass, perforated zinc, or a combination of two or more of these, at the 

 option of the proprietor. This cage is certainly susceptible of much improvement 



