IXTRODUCTION. Xxlx 



insects are more conveniently pinned lying flat on the hand, or when resting between two 

 fingers of the open hand. When pinned, the specimen should be transferred to the collecting- 

 box, which should be of a convenient size for the pocket, and must be lined at the top and 

 bottom with cork. It should be deep enough to avoid the risk of the insects pinned on 

 opposite sides coming in contact when the box is shut, and it should never be closed without 

 the collector making sure that there is no such danger. Collecting-boxes may be made of wood 

 or zinc. The latter will keep the insects fresher and in better condition for setting, especially 

 if the cork be damped occasionally. Collectors in foreign countries generally employ "papers" 

 instead of boxes. These are prepared of square pieces of paper, which are folded diagonally 

 and doubled over at the side, leaving a sort of triangular envelope open at one end. When an 

 insect is caught and killed, the wings are closed over the back, and it is dropped into one of 

 these, and the end is doubled over. Insects in papers will keep very well packed in a tin 

 box, with a little cotton-wool laid over to prevent their shaking about. Of course, the box 

 should contain a little camphor, to keep away mites. The specimens can then be relaxed and 

 set at leisure. The greater number of exotic insects sent home by collectors abroad are packed 

 in this manner, as a great many can be packed in a very small compass, and there is no danger 

 of a heavy insect getting loose and smashing everything else, as often happens when insects 

 are sent home pinned in boxes. But this method, though very convenient when proper 

 apparatus cannot be obtained or carried, is not to be recommended when other means can be 

 adopted, for it is always better to set an insect when fresh than to relax it afterwards ; and 

 insects which are left long unset become dry and brittle, and are apt to lose their leo-s and 

 antenna; with the slightest touch or pressure. As in the case of boxes, the papers used 

 should be proportioned to the size of the insects, and only one specimen should be put into 

 each paper. 



On the Use of the Net. — Many small butterflies and moths fly gently near the ground, and 

 may be caught without the slightest difficulty. In the case of strongly-flying insects, some may 

 be run down, but with many this is almost impossible. An insect resting on a flower or on a twig 

 may be struck at sideways, but it is generally better to approach the net as close to the insect as 

 possible without alarming it, and then to strike suddenly. Even the Humming-bird Hawk IVIoth 

 may easily be captured in this manner. As soon as the stroke is delivered, the net must be 

 thrown round the stick with a twist of the wrist, and the collector should then seize it with his left 

 hand, above the point where the insect is fluttering, when he can proceed either to transfer it alive 

 to a pill-box, or to kill and pin it on the spot. If it is a species which is not required, or in too 

 bad condition for the cabinet, the net should be inverted, and the insect shaken out. It is a great 

 pity to destroy any more specimens than you require for yourself or your friends. Among the 

 most difficult insects to deal with are perhaps those which are in the habit of settling on the 

 flowers of the bramble (the Silver-washed Fritillary, for instance), as the net is very likely to be 

 entangled and probably torn by the thorns. But it is still more difficult to catch those insects 

 which are in the habit of flying low and settling on the bare ground, or those which settle on the 

 bole of a tree. In some cases we can lay the ring over them and hold up the net, when they will 

 fly into it ; but it more frequently happens that they take fright and fly away before we can do 

 this, and escape in the opposite direction. When an insect is flying low, or settled on the ground, 

 the best chance is a side stroke of the net, held as near the ground as possible without actually 

 touching it ; and if the insect is seated on the bole of a tree, we must make a sweep at it as it flies 

 up. In neither case is a direct stroke to be recommended, as it would probably break either the 

 ring or the stick, without securing the insect. 



