112 WORK AT HOME AND IN THE FIELD 



CHAPTER VIII 

 REARING LEPIDOPTERA 



Management of Ova 



IN the management of insects in all stages the strictest attention 

 must always be paid to one general rule on which the success of 

 the work almost entirely depends ; and that is keep every specimen 

 as far as possible under the same conditions as those in which you 

 find it in nature. 



Applying this principle to ova, we store them in airy and light 

 places, protected from the direct rays of the sun, and avoid handling 

 and rough treatment of any kind. It is also advisable in most 

 cases to maintain a slight amount of dampness corresponding with 

 that of the open air at the particular season of the year. 



They do not require much space, and it is certainly desirable 

 not to give much, otherwise the newly hatched larvte, when their 

 time arrives, will actively wander all round their premises in search 

 of food, and give you no end of trouble in gathering them up. 



Chip boxes are, as a rule, very good and very convenient 

 receptacles for ova. After placing the eggs in these, cover them 

 over with very fine muslin, held in place by elastic bands, and label 

 each as far as you can with the name of the species contained, and 

 other particulars worth remembering. The boxes may then be 

 put in front of a window facing north, or in any situation within 

 or out of doors where rain and sun cannot reach them. A green- 

 house is an admirable place in which to keep them, the natural 

 dampness of the atmosphere being apparently a considerable 

 assistance to the tiny larvte just as they are striving to escape from 

 their shell. 



Whatever place is selected, it is absolutely necessary that the 

 ova be carefully watched, so that each brood may be supplied with 

 the required food plant within a few hours of quitting the shells. 



