190 NATURE STUDY REVIEW [8 :5— May, 1912 



are those splendid, swift flying forms which fly about aquatic 

 places and which the young collector may already know as "snake 

 feeders," "snake doctors," or "devil's darning needles." Some 

 times these dragon flies may be seen to swoop down and strike 

 the surface of the water a number of times with the tip of the 

 abdomen. These are females laying eggs. 



The nymphs which crawl on the bottom can be collected by 

 rapid sweepings of the dip net on the bottom. Those which bur- 

 row into the bottom can be taken by scraping the surface layer 

 of the bottom into the net and then washing out the mud or sand, 

 thus leaving only the nymphs and the coarser rubbish. The gar- 

 den rake can also be successfully used. The nymphs are easily 

 kept in the aquarium if they are given -plenty of clean water and 

 something to crawl out upon. A tub or pail containing two 

 inches of sand and gravel and covered with netting makes a good 

 aquarium. Feed them by throwing in flies or water insects. 

 Small bits of raw meat can be used but they must be moved about 

 so as to appear alive, or otherwise they will not be touched. 

 These insects can be raised easily in the out-door cage. 



Mosquito Larvae and Pupae (Figs. 2 and 3). 



The eggs, larvae and pupae of the mosquito are to be found 

 during the summer in almost every stagnant pool. The eggs are 

 sometimes laid in little one layered rafts which float about on the 

 surface of the water. The larva or Wriggler which hatches from 

 each egg has a rather large thorax, and a long slender abdomen 

 which is forked at the end. Numerous clusters of hairs occur on 

 the surface of the body. This Wriggler is compelled to come to 

 the surface of the water to breathe, and secures the necessary air 

 by pushing one of the prongs of the forked abdomen through the 

 surface film. After a time the larva changes to a pupa, a curious 

 creature which appears to be all head, with a slender abdomen 

 bent around towards the "face." At the tip of the head (really 

 the head and the thorax united) is a pair of little "ears" which are 

 the breathing organs. When breathing, the pupa hangs by the 

 head at the surface of the water with these little "ears" pushed 

 through the film. Later this pupa changes into the two winged 

 insect, the Mosquito, which is so familiar that no description is 

 necessary. Perhaps none of the other insects can be reared with 

 so little trouble. The eggs or the wrigglers can be collected and 

 placed in a jar of stagnant water containing a little decaying 

 vegetation and they will take care of themselves. It is an easy 



