66 



NATUBAL SCIENCE NEWS. 



Night collecting with lure can be 

 commenced about March ist, and 

 continued until the flowers bloom; 

 then taken up about the middle of 

 August, when our beautiful catocala 

 moths can be taken in considerable 

 numbers, besides many of our rar- 

 er Geometrids. I find that it is al- 

 most useless to lure the walnut or 

 hickory tree, as very few insects 

 will be taken from them, for what 

 reason I cannot explain. If there 

 is any tree where the sap is running 

 freely in the spring, either from an 

 abrasion of the bark or a cut from 

 an axe, don't neglect visiting it day 

 and night, as many insects will be 

 caught thus which would not visit 

 a lure. — F. E. Gray, in Random 

 Notes. 



May Insects. 



In this month the hibernated le- 

 gion is warmed to new life, and 

 the number of species occurring is 

 too great to warrant special indi- 

 cation. The large Tiger Swallow- 

 tail (Eapiiio turntts) darts swiftly 

 about, while a lot of humbler but- 

 terflies are seen. Those gigantic 

 beauties of the night, the Cecropia 

 moth {Platysamia cecropia) and the 

 Polyphemus moth (Te/ca polyphe- 

 mus), are seen hanging listless as 

 they just issue from their cocoons, 

 or pass bat-like at dusk overhead. 



Some of the hawk-moths(»S/>///;/ < ^- 

 idce) already begin to hover at 

 twilight over honey-yielding flow- 

 ers. The Carpenter moth (Xylctt- 

 tes robinia) will be found early in 

 the morning, resting on the trunk 

 of the black locust, from which 

 the empty pupal exuvium sticks 

 out as an index. A host of Hy- 

 menoptera make their advent; and 

 noticeably the giganticSaw Ry(Cim- 

 bex americana) will be found ovi- 

 positing in willow leaves, and the 

 pigeon Tremex( Tr em ex columba)'\n 

 old maple trunks. The Buffalo- 

 gnat {Si ma Hum') swarms in the 

 lower Mississippi country. The 

 fruit-grower finds the Plum Cur- 

 culio ( Conotrachclits nemtpliar) 

 making its dreaded crescent-mark 

 on his fruit, and the Canker-worms 

 blighting his apple-trees. The 

 housekeeper observes with dread 

 the various clothes-moths {Tinea) 

 and the carpet-beetle {Anthrenus 

 scrophularice). But the latter part 

 of the month is chiefly character- 

 ized, first, by hosts of delicate 

 May-flies (Ep/iemeridce); second, 

 by the swarms of May-beetles 

 {Lachmostcrna fusca), which begin 

 to defoliate oak-groves and poplar 

 trees. — Science Almanac. 



Camp Agassiz. 



A Summer Home for Boys Devoted to 

 Natural History and the Pleasures of 

 Camp Life. 



If you have a boy, you know 

 how he likes to get out of doors 

 and tramp across the fields or 

 through the woods to go fishing 

 and hunting, or, best of all, to 

 camp out. The average boy 

 shows this liking so early in life 

 that it must be born in him, And 

 if so, it's bound to develop, for 

 boys will be boys, do what we may. 

 Therefore it rests with us who are 

 parents to find out how they can 

 get the greatest good from it. 

 Fortunately a month or two out of 

 doors every year, under suitable 

 precautions, will go farther toward 

 keeping a boy healthy and vigor- 

 ous than all the nostrums ever in- 

 vented. This is certainly one 

 great advantage, but it seems to 

 us there may be another. 



Most boys have also something 

 of a naturalist's love for the beings 

 they find in the woods, the fields 

 and the water. They take great 

 pleasure in making collections of 

 insects, shells, minerals, birds' 

 eggs, and what not. This liking 

 is also inborn, but needs guidance 

 even more than the former. When 

 properly cultivated, however, it 

 can be made just as conducive to 

 mental health and vigor as can the 

 other to physical. Realizing these 

 facts, we venture to combine them 

 in the manner herein announced. 



Camp Agassiz is on the coast of 

 Maine, in the town of Harpswell, 

 a little to the east of Casco Bay. 



Steamers run to Portland twice a 

 day, from a wharf some two miles 

 below the camp, insuring prompt 

 delivery of mail and all needed 

 supplies. 



The situation is an ideal one 

 for Natural History work. The 

 shore is quite heavily wooded and 

 thus furnishes, with the adjacent 

 islands, a fine breeding ground for 

 all our smaller birds, notably the 

 warblers and shore birds. It thus 

 offers special advantages for prac- 

 tical work in Ornithology and 

 Oology. 



□ Then there are many old Indian 

 shell-heaps along the coast, easily 

 accessible, and in which a little 

 digging is almost sure to yield 

 good results in relics of various 

 kinds. 



The marine life is abundant and 

 of peculiar interest, since this is 

 a sort of borderland. It is the 

 northern limit for some species, 



and the southern for others, and 

 thus presents a wide range of 

 forms. 



It is a good section for Botani- 

 cal study also, combining maritime 

 with inland species. 



The Camp itself consists of a 

 snug little cottage, well furnished 

 throughout, and capable of ac- 

 commodating ten or a dozen boys. 

 This will be used as a headquar- 

 ters, and will insure shelter in 

 stormy weather ,and a safe storage 

 for utensils and specimens. At a 

 little distance on the beach there 

 will be a regular, camp, with sleep- 

 ing, cooking and dining tents, and 

 a complete camping outfit. It will 

 stand in a grove, looking out over 

 the sea, and with a spring of ex- 

 cellent water near at hand. This 

 camp will be resorted to as the 

 weather permits, and the boys will 

 here be initiated into many of the 

 fascinating secrets of real camp 

 life. 



For further enjoyment there is 

 always plenty of good fishing to 

 be had, and at a fine little beach 

 near the camp daily lessons will 

 be given in swimming and rowing. 



Frequent trips will be made to 

 the various collecting grounds, 

 and practical instruction will be 

 given in the best methods of col- 

 lecting, preserving and arranging 

 specimens. This will include 

 Taxidermy if so desired. 



Some of " the simpler truths in 

 Natural History which the col- 

 lected specimens illustrate, and in 

 which they awaken an interest, 

 will then be talked over and ex- 

 plained. 



The formation of a healthy, vig- 

 orous interest will be the con- 

 stant aim — an interest that will 

 develop into a genuine pleasure in 

 unraveling Nature and applying 

 her truths to everyday life. 



Two good microscopes will be 

 furnished for the use of the boys, 

 with the necessary apparatus, and 

 they will be taught how to use 

 them properly. A reference li- 

 brary of some fifty volumes, con- 

 taining the best recent publica- 

 tions in Natural History for boys, 

 will also be furnished. 



The Camp will open on Wed- 

 nesday, June 26th, and close Fri- 

 day, August 23d. 



Terms — for the season, $65; for 

 one month, $35. [This will in- 

 clude laundry and all ordinary 

 supplies.] For any further par- 

 ticulars address 



Chas. B. Wilson, 

 Johns Hopkins University, Balti- 

 more, Md. 



