76 IN THE ACADIAN LAND. 



touch the water, where the long-legged skippers 

 are hurrying in hasty skating-like strides hither 

 and thither. These are a species of bugs. There 

 is a rather large family of them. The older name 

 of our species is Gf-erris remiges. If one will throw 

 crumbs of bread to them they will eagerly seize 

 bits of it and scurry away as fast as possible. 

 Some of them are provided with wings, but I have 

 never yet observed one of them fl}'ing. About 

 midsummer one may see myriads of young ones, 

 small copies of the parents. They are all sharp- 

 sighted and quick to move on the appearance of 

 danger from below or above, especially from the 

 water. It is very interesting to notice how their 

 feet press the water into little dimples, but do 

 not become wet and sink into it ; they are clad all 

 over with waterproof down. Many of them live 

 over winter, mostly crawling under water in fa- 

 vorable localities among sunken brush and drift- 

 wood. In the spring the eggs are laid on twigs 

 and dead grasses about the water. They live on 

 smaller insects, but not leaving the water for that 

 purpose. 



These little oarsmen are not the only claim- 

 ants of these shores. Here are other boatmen 

 with oars, but they do not perch themselves 

 up on long stilt-like legs, but rest their bodies flat 

 on the water. These are the " whirligig beetles, " 



