45 



Cotton, the disciple of Walton, surpassed bis " father " in the angler's art, in fly- 

 fishing at least. Speaking of natural flies, he says : — " We generally use but two sorts, 

 and those but in the two months of May and June only, namely, the green drake and the 

 stone fly ; though I have made use of a third that way called the camlet fly, with very 

 good success for grayling, but never saw it angled with by any other, after this manner, 

 my master only excepted, who died many years ago, and was one of the best anglers that 

 ever I knew. — Comp. Anglers, Pt. II, Ch. V. 



In Ch. VII , under the head of " May," he tells us that " we have four several flies 

 which contend for the title of the May-fly, namely : 



The Green Drake, The Black-fly, 



The Stone-fly, The little yellow May-fly, 



And all these have their champions and advocates to dispute and plead their priority ; 

 though I do not understand why the two last named should, the first two having so mani- 

 festly the advantage both in their beauty and the wonderful execution they do in their 

 season." 



Under " December," he says : " Of all these (and I have named you a great many 

 killing flies) none are fit to be compared with the Drake and the Stone-fly." 



Of the insects, then, belonging to the Neuroptera, of which I shall now speak, these 

 shall take precedence, — Green Drake, Grey Drake (Ephemera). 



It is to Aristotle that we owe the name Ephemeron, or Day fly, as applied to the 

 insect known to anglers as the Drake. The Old Greek naturalist tells how the River 

 Hypanis brings down, at a certain season, capsules like grape-seeds, out of which, when 

 they burst, proceed living creatures which fly about till evening, and then die. — Hist, 

 of Animals, Bk. V., ch. 18. 



The female lays her eggs (to the number of seven or eight hundred) in batches, here 

 and there, on the river. They sink to the bottom and become attached to submerged 

 objects. Here they soon hatch. The young larva? tunnel for themselves tubular retreats 

 in the mud of the river, and feed upon minute objects both vegetable and animal. They 

 have a remarkable breathing arrangement on either side of the abdomen consisting of a row 

 of fringed tracheal appendages, or gills, which are constantly agitated, to bring fresh cur- 

 rents of oxygenated water within reach of their respiratory action. 



The nympha resembles the larva, but has the addition of wing cases in which the 

 embryo wings lie folded. When the hour arrives for the great change from its aquatic to 

 its aerial existence, the insect rises to' the surface of the water, or ascends some object that 

 affords vantage-ground — a post, or flag, for instance. It then rends its nymphal case, its 

 diver's habit, and lo ! the pseud-imago or Green Drake is presented to our view. We say 

 the pseud-imago, for, as the rider in the circus throws off dress after dress until harlequin 

 is revealed, so Ephemera has yet to cast aside another casing ere it can appear in full 

 activity as the Grey Drake. Not only the nymphal case, but the cast-off filmy dress of 

 the pseud-imago^of Ephemera, may often be found in early summer in the insect's favourite 

 haunts. 



In its perfect form the Drake is a four-winged fly ; its hind wings being very small. 

 It carries all its wings erect. Its ant^nnce are short and awl-shaped (Subulicomes). It 

 has no mandibles — as the fly eats nothing, it has no need of these. Its tail is furnished 

 with setaceous filaments. Over what period the existence of the insect extends has not 

 been accurately determined. It is supposed that its aquatic life endures till the third 

 year ; its after existence is very brief — the Green Drake stage lasts for two or three 

 hours ; the Grey Drake for not many more ; for as soon as the female has laid her eggs 

 she perishes. With regard to the name, Cotton says, the insect is called The Drake, 

 bacause its tail is turned back, but the generally received opinion is that it is so named 

 because the artificial representations of it are made from the feathers of the Mallard, or 

 Wild Drake. 



We are told by Reaumur, that, in France, the flights of Ephemerae sometimes 

 .resemble a fall of snow when the flakes are largest. And I have often sailed on the 

 Ottawa and the St. Lawrence when the vessel has been covered to an offensive degree 



