An Insect Hawk. 
J. B. PARDOE, D.D.S., BOUND BROOK, N. j. 
In the mountains of New Jersey on a 
beautiful summer’s day I was enjoying 
my vacation by walking and by hunting 
with my trusty kodak which I always 
take with me on my nature strolls among 
the flowers and other beauties of nature. 
A little white butterfly came flitting 
along, now and then stopping to inves- 
tigate a flower. I thought, here is my 
chance to add an interesting picture to 
the collection of which I already have 
many hundred. I prepared my camera 
and was following the cabbage butterfly 
when a hawk-like insect swooped down, 
Nearly all of their victims are captured 
on the wing, and any flying insect is 
liable to be caught by them — other flies, 
bees, beetles, moths, butterflies, grasshop- 
pers, and even members of their own spe- 
cies, so that they are true cannibals. Just 
as with the praying Mantis, or rear- 
horse, the female frequently resents the 
caresses of the male, and grasps him and 
eats him. They will also feed upon cat- 
erpillars, but rarely. Persons engaged 
in bee culture especially fear these rob- 
ber-flies, which are known rather gen- 
erally in this country as bee-killers. One 
of Dr. Fitch’s correspondents sent in an 
interesting account of the damage done 
THE INSECT HAWK. 
Photograph by Dr. J. B. Pardoe. 
grabbed the victim and with it flew to 
a leaf among the flowers. Now, you 
robber, I thought, I will get your pic- 
ture with your prize. So here we have 
first-hand evidence against the robber-flv. 
“K ^ ¥ V ¥ 
Professor Leland O. Howard in “The 
Insect Book” has the following interest- 
ing statement regarding the robber-fly : 
“Like the hawk, they swoop upon their 
prey, and grasping it securely between 
their forefeet they violently bear it away. 
to his apiary. The robber-fly captured 
bees by making rapid dashing catching 
them on the wing, then wrapping its 
legs about the bee, and pressing it tight- 
ly to its own body it immediately sought 
a bush or tall weed upon which to alight 
and devour its prey, piercing a hole in 
the body and sucking out the fluids and 
soft internal viscera, leaving only the 
hard outer skin. Upon the ground be- 
neath some favorable perch for the flv 
near the apiary hundreds of these shells 
