186 POPULAR OFFICIAL GUIDE. 
THE INSECT COLLECTION.* 
A collection of insects was formed and placed on exhibi- 
tion during the early swnmer of 1910. While this first 
exhibit was not elaborate, it excited such interest that it 
was decided to enlarge it, by taking advantage of the sea- 
son which then was at its best for insect collecting. 
A series of long shelves has been built in the Pavilion 
between the Small-Mammal House and the Ostrich House, 
and thirty-five glass-fronted cages, together with a row of 
aquaria for aquatic specimens, were installed. A number 
of collecting trips were made into the country within a 
radius of twenty-five miles of the city, with such marked 
success, that by the middle of July the collection was pro- 
nounced by a number of visitors to equal in interest any 
exhibition of the kind heretofore attempted in this country, 
or in Europe. In view of the marked interest created by 
this display, the insect collection will hereafter be a perma- 
nent feature of the Park. 
There are so many possibilities in exhibiting living in- 
sects that it is difficult to select groups to feature for the 
summer. Our efforts were first directed toward exhibiting a 
series of the different insects that sing, and also a series 
of species injurious to the interests of the agriculturists, 
together with a number of the insects that prey upon the 
noxious species. The collection of singing insects was such 
a marked success that it will hereafter be continued each 
summer. 
We are gathering from both the Old World and the New, 
a fine collection of the larger silk moths. The cocoons will 
be shown on panels, and inasmuch as a number of the 
moths will be emerging daily, this exhibit should be instrue- 
tive. During the winter the insect collection is made up 
largely of tropical species; and in this series we include the 
large bird-killing spiders, scorpions and centipedes, even 
though these creatures are not to be classified as true insects. 
The collection of singing insects of the past summer was 
composed of the meadow locust, greater and lesser cone- 
headed locust, the Katy-did, broad-winged locust, field 
cricket, lesser field cricket, smooth-winged cricket and two 
species of the tree crickets. There were about five hundred 
~ *This interesting collection was formed, installed and labeled by 
Curator R. L. Ditmars, with the assistance of Mr. Charles Snyder and 
other members of the Department of Reptiles. 
