NATURAL HISTORY WORK IN CART AGO 63 



kept it in one of our tumblers. The eggs hatched between 

 July 21 and August 5 and we were able to rear one of these 

 larvae in the tumbler until its final transformation to the 

 winged state on February 23, 1910, the larval period thus 

 lasting about seven months. 



When we were in Cartago in May, June and July we fre- 

 quently went out in the early evening with cyanide jars, to 

 capture the numerous moths which were then resting on the 

 houses nearest the arc lights. Although the collection of 

 Lepidoptera was entirely a secondary consideration with us, 

 no entomologist could have passed by such opportunities as 

 these walls offered, for the number and variety of species 

 were a constant source of wonder and admiration. During 

 July A. often captured great numbers of moths in the morn- 

 ings, "sleeping" on walls, door-jambs or window frames. 

 None were ever taken on the sunny side of the street and 

 they were most numerous on the main street where the 

 lights were brightest at night. On one occasion we happened 

 to see and to gather a number of large handsome sphinx 

 moths on a Saturday morning, when, being a school holiday, 

 the small boys were out on the streets in force. Their at- 

 tention was naturally attracted and by the time we reached 

 the corner of our hotel street we had enough interested assist- 

 ants around to block the sidewalk completely. Our bottles 

 and hands being full we were glad of the excuse to retreat to 

 our room lest the police should consider it necessary to dis- 

 perse the mob and arrest the ringleaders. Others helped 

 us also and on the evening of December fourth Mr. Turner, 

 who was staying at our hotel, brought a huge moth which he 

 caught near an electric light. It was alive and vigorous. 

 We put it in a tin can with chloroform on cotton, and meas- 

 ured and papered it next day. Its body was 2Vs inches 

 long, its front wing nearly 6 inches and the total spread of 

 its front wings 1275 inches. Its wings were colored in differ- 



