THE SEASONS IN GUIANA. 13 
rarely a shower but the mosquitoes are particularly 
obnoxious at that time. Where there are bushes and 
trees these little pests congregate on the windward side 
and do not enter far into the bush. It is a common 
error that trees around a house harbour them, for some 
of the most infested places in Georgetown are bare of 
vegetation. 
Besides mosquitoes the end of a cycle is charaéterised 
by swarms of beetles (nard-backs) and flying wood-ants ; 
these generally come with the rains. Accompanying 
them are the whistling and croaking frogs, the six o’clock 
cicada, and great hawk moths, all of which appear to 
have their particular seasons, generally coincident with 
the end of one and the beginning of another cycle. 
Careful observation will no doubt go to prove that the 
breeding times of animals coincide with those of the 
plants, but we can only indicate this as a subjeét for 
enquiry. 
Before concluding this paper, which is by no means 
so: satisfa€tory as might be wished, we may state that 
it is written to call attention to a very interesting matter 
which appears to have been hitherto overlooked. The 
observations of one person confined to a particular 
locality can never be anything like conclusive, but it is 
possible that by indicating the lines of research, others 
may be induced tosupplementthem. That it is desirable 
to know when certain fruits ripen is obvious ~- with- 
out this anything like a regular trade could not be 
carried on. Again, we have indications that seeds 
should be planted at particular times to secure good 
crops. No doubt it will be found that if, for example, 
corn is planted at the right time, the crop will be larger 
