proceedings oe the third entomological meeting 947 



Apparatus. 

 Turning now to the apparatus required for collecting insects the 

 absolutely necessary items include net, store-box, pinS, forceps, lens, 

 killing bottle, tubes, spirit, and note-book, to which various other items 

 may be added. 



Nets. A net for general collecting may be made at a pinch from a 

 piece of old mosquito-netting or muslin sewn on to a ring made from 

 a slip of bamboo fastened to a forked stick or joined to a straight stick 

 by a metal Y-piece. (Plate 147, fig. 1). Such a net is quite a useful 

 weapon to keep handy for use within a limited area, such as a 

 bungalow compound, but for convenience of transport a more portable 

 form is better, and a wire-framed folding net (Plate 147, fig. 2, 

 and Plate 148), adjustable to any stick as a handle, will fulfil all 

 ordinary purposes. One obvious advantage of an adjustable net is 

 that it may be fitted on to any ordinary walking-stick or umbrella or 

 on to a long bamboo if it is desired to catch an insect settled or flying 

 high up. The size of the net may be made to suit individual require- 

 ments, but personally I like a moderately small net, about 12 to 15 

 inches in diameter across the mouth and about 18 to 20 inches deep. 

 This size is big enough to catch the largest-sized insects and at the same 

 tune is sufficiently light to ensure the quick stroke necessary to secure 

 rapid flyers. The bottom of the net should be cut square with the 

 corners rounded oS ; and the depth of the bag should Suffice to enable 

 the net to be closed by turning the rim over, whilst it should not be so 

 deep as to cause' any difficulty in securing specimens at its bottom. 

 As regards material, a silk gauze is the best, being at once light, strong 

 and transparent — three qualities indispensable to a good net-bag. 

 Cotton materials, such as mosquito-netting, may also be used but are 

 less Satisfactory in use and less durable than silk. Purchased nets are 

 usually dyed green, presumably on the supposition that the intended 

 victims are less likely to take notice of the waving of a green object, 

 but this seems to be a fallacy and in actual practice it will be found 

 that it is the movement, much less than the colour, of an object which 

 is apt to frighten insects. It is, moreover, more difficult to see the 

 enclosed insect in a green net than in a white one. It seems, therefore, 

 that no end is gained by the use of green-dyed material, more especially 

 as the dye tends to rot it, and a white net appears preferable on every 

 ground. 



The successful capture of insects, especially of very strong-flyers, 

 is an art only to be acquired by practice. It must be remembered, 

 -as noted above, that insects are keenly perceptive of motion and the 



