﻿384 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  Part 
  I 
  

   INTRODUCTORY 
  

  

  THE 
  UNDERTAKING, 
  LOCATION, 
  OBJECTS, 
  METHODS 
  AND 
  RESULTS 
  

  

  "To 
  collect 
  and 
  study 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  aquatic 
  insects, 
  paying 
  special 
  

   attention 
  to 
  the 
  conditions 
  necessary 
  for 
  the 
  existence 
  of 
  the 
  various 
  

   species, 
  their 
  relative 
  value 
  as 
  food 
  for 
  fishes, 
  the 
  relations 
  of 
  the 
  forms 
  

   to 
  each 
  other, 
  and 
  their 
  life 
  histories": 
  such 
  were 
  the 
  instructions 
  under 
  

   which 
  I 
  went 
  to 
  Saranac 
  Inn, 
  to 
  take 
  charge 
  of 
  the 
  opening 
  session 
  of 
  

   the 
  entomologic 
  field 
  station. 
  Arrangements 
  had 
  been 
  previously 
  made 
  

   with 
  state 
  entomologist 
  Dr 
  E. 
  P. 
  Felt, 
  that 
  the 
  session 
  should 
  extend 
  from 
  

   June 
  15 
  to 
  August 
  20. 
  I 
  arrived 
  at 
  Saranac 
  Inn 
  on 
  the 
  evening 
  of 
  June 
  

   12, 
  and 
  at 
  once 
  began 
  looking 
  the 
  ground 
  over. 
  Dr 
  Felt 
  came 
  on 
  the 
  

   14th, 
  and 
  spent 
  the 
  day 
  with 
  me 
  canvassing 
  the 
  situations 
  to 
  be 
  studied. 
  

   My 
  assistant, 
  Cornelius 
  Betten, 
  arrived 
  on 
  the 
  15th, 
  and 
  the 
  regular 
  work 
  

   of 
  the 
  session 
  was 
  at 
  once 
  begun, 
  to 
  be 
  continued 
  without 
  cessation 
  to 
  the 
  

   date 
  of 
  closing. 
  

  

  Through 
  the 
  courtesy 
  of 
  the 
  New 
  York 
  state 
  fisheries, 
  game 
  and 
  forest 
  

   commission 
  the 
  station 
  was 
  furnished 
  with 
  working 
  quarters 
  in 
  the 
  hatch- 
  

   ery 
  building, 
  and 
  was 
  allowed 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  hatchery 
  equipment, 
  

   not 
  then 
  otherwise 
  needed. 
  There 
  were 
  three 
  very 
  considerable 
  advan- 
  

   tages 
  to 
  our 
  work 
  in 
  this 
  arrangement: 
  i) 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  several 
  hatching 
  

   troughs 
  with 
  their 
  continuous 
  supply 
  of 
  well 
  aerated 
  water 
  for 
  insect 
  

   breedings, 
  2) 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  a 
  carpenter's 
  bench 
  and 
  tools 
  for 
  the 
  construc- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  special 
  breeding 
  cages, 
  3) 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  a 
  boat 
  for 
  collecting. 
  

  

  We 
  were 
  soon 
  supplied 
  with 
  a 
  special 
  equipment 
  for 
  the 
  collecting 
  and 
  

   rearing 
  of 
  aquatic 
  insects, 
  that 
  was 
  excellently 
  adapted 
  to 
  our 
  needs, 
  and 
  

   without 
  which 
  the 
  work 
  hereinafter 
  recorded 
  could 
  not 
  have 
  been 
  done. 
  

   Our 
  sincere 
  thanks 
  are 
  due 
  Dr 
  Felt 
  for 
  his 
  care 
  in 
  providing 
  exactly 
  the 
  

   apparatus 
  asked 
  for. 
  Save 
  for 
  the 
  first 
  10 
  days, 
  during 
  which 
  we 
  were 
  

   unable 
  to 
  find 
  Hving 
  quarters 
  within 
  2 
  miles 
  of 
  our 
  field 
  of 
  operations, 
  we 
  

   had 
  the 
  still 
  farther 
  great 
  advantage 
  of 
  close 
  proximity 
  to 
  good 
  collect- 
  

   ing 
  grounds. 
  

  

  The 
  season 
  was 
  one 
  of 
  excessive 
  rainfall. 
  The 
  first 
  week 
  of 
  the 
  session 
  

   and 
  the 
  last 
  one 
  were 
  comparatively 
  dry 
  ; 
  but, 
  for 
  the 
  remainder, 
  it 
  was 
  

   raining 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  third 
  of 
  the 
  time. 
  Thus 
  collecting 
  was 
  greatly 
  inter- 
  

   fered 
  with, 
  sweeping 
  of 
  vegetation 
  was 
  almost 
  prevented, 
  trap 
  lanterns 
  were 
  

   flooded 
  night 
  after 
  night 
  and 
  their 
  catch 
  spoiled, 
  and 
  regularity 
  in 
  field 
  

   operations 
  was 
  made 
  impracticable. 
  

  

  The 
  routine 
  work 
  of 
  the 
  station 
  consisted 
  in 
  collecting 
  and 
  studying 
  

   aquatic 
  insects 
  in 
  all 
  their 
  stages 
  of 
  development, 
  in 
  conducting 
  feeding 
  

  

  