COLLECTING INSECTS 



II 



m 



smoother bark, sometimes hardly visible, there may be scale insects sucking 

 the vital fluids from the tissues beneath, while numerous forms take shelter 

 under loose edges of the rougher bark. Caterpillars of 

 various kinds may be found crawling on the trunk or 

 resting on the smaller twigs and sometimes resembling 

 their support so closely as to require a practised eye to 

 detect them. In winter and early spring the peculiar case 

 bearers, the cocoons of the apple Bucai/atrix, and the 

 more concealed winter retreats of the bud worm can be 

 found only by close inspection. Then there are the eggs 

 of various species, some times in clusters on the bark or 

 even in belts around the limbs, as in the case of the 

 apple and forest tent caterpillars. Minute particles of 

 sawdust hanging from a slender thread or lying at the 

 base of the trunk indicate the presence of 

 borers. In a similar manner examine 

 the foliage quietly and carefully. Various 

 larvae, some moths, leaf-feeding beetles, 

 bugs, etc. may be found and by holding 

 the net or an inveited umbrella under a 

 bough and beating it with a stick other 

 good specimens can be obtained. When it 

 is remembered that 371 species of insects 

 are known to attack the apple tree or its fruit in one way 

 or another, some idea will be obtained of the possibilities 

 in collecting. Every part of a tree — root, stem and branch, 

 flower, leaf and fruit — will repay examination. A person 

 who will take one plant and study thoroughly the insects 

 occurring thereon throughout the year can hardly avoid 

 making a rich contribution to the world's fund of knowl- 

 edge. 



The insects inhabiting a meadow, those living in sandy 

 places, aquatic or alpine forms, all offer inviting fields to 

 the student of nature, and in each the collector will find 

 much of interest. In meadows or grass land and other 

 places where there are not too many obstructions, sweep- 

 ing with the net results in the capture of many*species. The collector 

 advances across the field swinging his net vigorously to one side just 

 above the herbage, or even hitting the taller plants, and at the end of 

 the stroke turns the net quickly and reverses the movement, thus produc- 



FiG. 9 EgK belt of 

 apple tent caterpil- 

 lar, enlarged (origi- 

 nal). 



P%^' 



Fig. 10 Egg belt 

 of forest tent cat- 

 erpillar, showing 

 a few exi)osed 

 eggs, enlarged 

 (original). 



