INSECTS 



five o'clock in the afternoon; but after the rush of the 

 first few days not many appear before dusk. 



It is difficult to catch a nymph in the very act of making 

 its exit from the ground, and apparently no observations 

 have been recorded on the manner of its leaving. Do the 

 insects leisurely open their doors some time in advance 

 of their actual need and wait below till the proper hour, 

 or do they break through the thin caps of earth and emerge 

 at once? Digging up many open chambers revealed a 

 living nymph in only one. Another issued from one of 

 several dozen holes filled with liquid plaster for obtaining 

 casts. Add to this the fact that great numbers of fresh 

 holes are to be seen every morning during the emergence 

 season, and the evidence would appear to indicate that 

 the insects open their doors in the evening and come out 

 at once. Only one chamber was found in the daytime 

 partly opened. 



It the insects are elusive and wary of being spied 

 upon as they make their debut into the upper world, a 

 witness of their subsequent behavior does not embarrass 

 them at all. However, events are imminent; there is 

 no time to waste. The crawling insects head for anv 

 upright object within their range of vision — a tree is the 

 ideal goal if it can be attained, and since the creatures 

 were born in trees there is likely to be one near by. Yet 

 it frequently happens that trees in which many were 

 hatched have been since cut down, in which case the 

 returning pilgrims must make a longer journey perhaps 

 than anticipated. But the transformation can not be 

 delayed; if a tree is not accessible, a bush or a weed, a 

 post, a telegraph pole, or a blade of grass will do. On 

 the trees some get only so tar as the trunk, others attain 

 the branches, but the mob gets out, upon the leaves. 

 Though thousands emerge almost simultaneously, they 

 have not all been timed alike. Some have but a few 

 minutes to spare, others can travel about for an hour or 

 so before anything happens. 



[194] 



