JNSEC T ORSER VA T1ON. 1 57 



ing themselves with such native ease as one can 

 never see when they are caught and caged and 

 brought indoors. Having placed a chair in the 

 shade, facing a sunlighted bank of evergreens, 

 laurels or rhododendrons, we must keep abso- 

 lutely still, closely on the watch with a small 

 field-glass in our hands for at least half an hour 

 if we desire to sec and study the insects that 

 will visit the flowers and leaves. As we walk 

 casually round a garden not very much can be 

 seen except the bees upon the blossoms or an 

 occasional dragon-fly. Almost every species of 

 fly darts away at the approach of man ; their 

 eyes are so marvellously observant of any moving 

 object that we can learn hardly anything of the 

 life-history of the various species unless we remain 

 perfectly quiescent long enough for confidence to 

 be restored, or, in other words, until the insects 

 forget our presence and are again at their ease. 



Hot sunshine seems to afford perfect bliss to 

 almost every kind of fly, and in that condition 

 we see them basking on leaves in great pro- 

 fusion. Bluebottles, the golden greenbottle, the 

 drone-fly, all the highly coloured, swift-darting sun- 



