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CATERPILLARS. 179 
species of Noctus, spin together two or more leaves into a sort of hut, in 
which they live by day, coming out at night to feed; and in order to 
obtain these we must of course examine the spun-up leaves. In this 
way Tethea subtusa, Cymatophora flavicornis, and several other species, 
may sometimes be obtained in abundance. Searching for caterpillars, 
however, is just one of those things in which practice makes perfect ; 
and a little study of books at odd hours to see what species we may 
expect to find at any particular time, and upon what plants they feed, 
will enable us to save ourselves a vast amount of time and trouble. 
There are various manuals upon the subject—the best, in my opinion, 
being Merrin’s ‘‘ Lepidopterist’s Calendar,” which contains a list of the 
eggs, caterpillars, pupee, and perfect insects to be found in each month of 
the year, and may be had interleaved with writing paper, on which to 
record the results of our own expeditions, a thing well worth doing in 
any case. But we are still without one list which to my mind would be 
even more useful—a list of plants, with the caterpillars which feed upon 
each. I wish I had the time and the ability to compile such a list, and 
thereby earn the gratitude of Entomologists for generations. 
IT might go on to say a great deal more upon the subject of searching 
for caterpillars; but it is time that I passed on to make a few observa- 
tions upon two other methods of obtaining them, which, though less scien- 
tific, are certainly more expeditious—I mean ‘‘ beating” and “‘sweeping.” 
The former of these methods is employed to obtain those species which 
live upon the leaves of trees and shrubs, while the latter is used when 
we are desirous of getting those which feed upon grasses, dock, heather, 
and other low-growing plants. And the apparatus required, for beating 
at all events, is very simple, consisting of a large umbrella—an appendage 
which may be found useful in other ways likewise—lined with some 
light coloured material, or possibly even whitewashed inside, so as to 
render the contents more visible. This implement is unfurled when 
wanted, and placed upside down under the branch or shrub where we 
suppose caterpillars to be, while with the other hand we hold a stout 
stick, with which we strike the branch sharply and pretty heavily, when 
the caterpillars will fall into the umbrella, and may be picked up at our 
leisure. I remember upon one occasion last year obtaining about fifty 
caterpillars of Fidonia piniaria in this way, as the result of three or four 
strokes upon the boughs of a Scotch fir. 
For ‘‘ sweeping” we require a separate instrument, in the shape of a 
stout net, with the bag made of ‘‘cheese-cloth” or coarse canvas, and 
altogether more strongly made than the ordinary net. With this in 
his hand, the collector walks through the heather, fern, grass, or ‘‘ what 
not,” sweeping his net first to the right, then to the left, through the 
herbage, almost as if he were mowing, and stopping after every half- 
dozen sweeps or so to examine the result of his labours. I have not done 
much in this way myself, but in some situations it is a very effective 
method. 
The caterpillars, when obtained, should be (with as little handling 
as possible) placed in boxes for conveyance to our homes, a leaf or twig 
of the food-plant being in all cases placed with them, and different species 
