HEARING. 299 



Boring insects are easy to rear but will not breed readily, unless they are 

 Lepidoptera. Galls are exceptionally difficult to manage, and I have found Dr. Sharp's 

 suggestion of always having a little carbolic acid to vapourise in the jar or cage a 

 good one. 



FIG. P. 

 Field cage, three feet cube. 



For breeding cages and jars, there is no standard. For small insects cages made 

 of perforated zinc with a sliding glass lid are very good, and are also handy for 

 travelling. From these up to cages 6 feet high there may be an indefinite series 

 according to the object in view. Many small species need nothing more than a glass- 

 topped box or a glass jar. 



Cleanliness, plenty of fresh food, a liberal provision of air, light, dry or damp 

 earth and shelter are the chief things to be looked for in rearing insects. 



Notes* 



It is a sound plan to tfork entirely by numbers, giving each species a serial nuffl* 

 ber and using that for all specimens of that species, and for all notes. All the records 

 concerning pests are kept by numbers and the various species are known by number 

 throughout. This rarely entails confusion when two closely allied species are confused 

 under one number, and even this can be avoided by giving a fresh number to a new- 

 batch of what one thinks may be a familiar species, till one is sure it is the same. 

 No harm is done by having one species under several numbers till one is snre they are 

 the same, as it is an easy matter to put tbem all under one number at any time. 



Notes habitually and regularly taken include field notes, notes from rearing cages, 

 notes of specimens sent in, notes from literature, and a note of all the specimens that 



