2 MISC. PUB. 601, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



WHAT TO COLLECT 



What to collect will depend on the purpose for which the material 

 is intended. Insects which are important as pests and for which 

 identification is needed should always be collected in numbers. A sam- 

 ple of 20 specimens should be the minimum, and even more are desir- 

 able. It is a good rule always to collect an adequate sample of all 

 the different stages, regardless of whether the insect is observed to 

 be a pest. Specimens can always be discarded or exchanged, but it 

 is not always possible to collect additional specimens at the time they 

 may be needed for study. 



Most persons will find it desirable to concentrate on one or two of 

 the major insect groups. There are so many insects — more than 80,000 

 kinds are known in North America alone — that it is scarcely possible 

 for one person to assemble a collection that includes examples of all 

 those occurring in a single locality. 



The collection of specimens alone is not enough. Information about 

 them is equally important. The collector should take advantage of 

 opportunities to observe and record interesting facts about the habits 

 and life histories of the different insects found, for in this way he 

 may add important details to the growing store of knowledge that 

 enables us successfully to compete with our insect enemies. 



EQUIPMENT AND COLLECTING METHODS 



The equipment required for assembling a representative insect col- 

 lection need not be elaborate or expensive. Most needs of the average 

 collector will be met by the items discussed in the following pages. 



Much equipment for collecting insects may be purchased from com- 

 mercial supply companies, most of which will send catalogs and price 

 lists on request. Below are given the names and addresses of a few 

 such companies. The United States Department of Agriculture does 

 not guarantee or endorse the firms listed or the reliability of their 

 products. In furnishing this list no claim is made that it is complete. 



Carpocapsa (Geo. Franck, Manager), 375 Lehigh Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa. 

 Central Scientific Company, 1700 Irving Park Boulevard, Chicago, 111. 

 Clay-Adams Company, Inc., 44 East Twenty-third Street, New York, N. Y. 

 Denoyer-Geppert Company, 5335-57 Ravenswood Avenue, Chicago, 111. 

 E. H. Sargent and Company, 155-165 East Superior Street, Chicago, 111. 

 General Biological Supply House, 761-763 East 68th Place, Chicago, 111. 

 Southern Biological Supply Co., Natural History Building, New Orleans, La. 

 Standard Scientific Supply Corp., 34-38 West Fourth Street, New York, N. Y. 

 Supply Department, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Mass. 

 Ward's Natural Science Establishment, 302 Goodman Street, North, Rochester, 

 N. Y. 



NETS 



Construction 



Although a considerable variety of nets may be purchased from 

 supply houses, many collectors prefer to make their own. The insect 

 net consists essentially of a cloth bag hung from a metal loop attached 

 to a handle. Figure 1, which shows parts of a beating, or sweeping, 

 net, illustrates the general principles involved in the construction of 



