B Y THE WA YSJDE 
1 
NATURE STUDY DEPARTMENT 
Insects. 
[Teachers of Nature'Study, pupils and 
subscribers are invited to write out this 
and the following lessons of the series 
and send them to the author in care of 
the editor.] 
The study of insects is most interesting 
and valuable if it begins with the life 
histories of a few forms. Material for 
such studv is within the reach of every- 
one, and the observations may be carried 
on easily in the school or home. The 
following outline is intended as a guide 
for the studv of some common insects. 
A little careful search will reveal the 
presence of many forms whose life his¬ 
tories may be followed. Moths and but¬ 
terflies will afford the best work for be¬ 
ginners. The student may begin by col¬ 
lecting all the larvae (caterpillars) that 
he can find. These may be kept in small 
boxes and supplied with the leaves of 
the plant on which they were found. 
The leaves should be fresh and slightly 
damp. Note briefly the time when the 
larvae were found, the size, the moulting 
! of the skin, the food preferred and the 
amount eaten, the general appearance of 
the animal. In many cases it will be 
possible to see the transformation to the 
pupa (chrysalis or cocoon). The adult 
i may not emerge until the following 
spring; but the pupae of early summer 
usually transform in the same year. 
One of the best insects for study is the 
Monarch butterfly. It is large and com¬ 
mon and goes through its metamorpho¬ 
sis rapidly. Eggs and larvae are very 
common on the milkweed plants; the 
former are tiny conical bodies looking 
like drops of the dried juice. The larvae 
have black, yellow and white stripes 
across the body. The cabbage butterfly 
larvae may be found on cabbage and na- 
sturium; they are the common green 
“worm.” The adult is a common white 
butterfly. The mourning cloak is an¬ 
other common butterfly, known by its 
dark wings with yellow boarders; its 
large spin) 7 caterpillars are often seen on 
willows. 
The entire life story of the mosquito 
may be followed by any one. The eggs 
are laid in early summer on the surface 
of stagnant water; they are fastened to¬ 
gether in “rafts” which look like flakes 
of soot. The eggs and the “wrigglers” 
that may be found should be kept in 
tumblers of water, which are supplied 
with a little plant life and covered over 
with netting. Note the position of the 
larvae in the water. The pupae are the 
comma-shaped wrigglers. Try to find 
out how they breathe. Try the effect of 
a drop of kerosene on the surface of water 
containing a few larvae and pupae; ex¬ 
plain this. When the adult emerge, 
notice the difference between the two 
sexes; the males are smaller, have feath¬ 
ery antennae (feelers), and do not “bite.” 
R. M. 
The Reappearance of the American Egret 
Near Chicago. 
(Continued from page 1) 
The young of the American egret leave 
the nest in July and the unsuspecting 
birds spread over a considerable area 
north, feeding in our small ponds through 
Lake County, Indiana, and as this is the 
time of year when large numbers of the 
employes of the many industrial plants 
of Whiting and Gary spend their Sun¬ 
days fishing and roaming through the 
territory shooting and killing everything 
that Hies, I almost despair of protecting 
this little band of brave bird which last 
year consisted of seven pairs, and I think 
they are still safe up to this year. The 
only way to protect the egret is to stop 
the demand entirely. If this is not done 
there will be no hopes of saving mv 
little Indiana colony of white egret. 
—Frank L. Woodruff 
