
swamp, valuable results may be reasonably anticipated. If 
practicable, a powerful lamp should be exhibited imme- 
diately outside the window of the collecting-room, as this 
has a very extensive range, and another lamp placed on a 
table just inside the window. The usual accessories—net, 
bottle, pins, &e.—should, of course, be easily available. 
With regard to the most suitable times for lighting up, I 
eannot do better than quote from Stainton :— 
‘‘Next, two particular points have to be borne in mind 
—First, you cannot collect by light on bright moonlight 
nights; you must notice when the moon rises and sets, and 
light up accordingly. Second, you cannot collect by light 
if your window faces the wind, for moths fly against the 
wind, and if the wind is west you must put your light on 
the east side of the house, or if the wind is east you must 
have your attracting-room on the west side of the house. 
Moths begin to come to light as soon as it gets dark, and 
continue coming for some time—indeed, occasional strag- 
elers will come throughout the night; the collector 
might therefore, with advantage, remain in his collecting- 
room till daybreak, ready to secure every specimen the 
moment it appeared, for some only remain for a short time 
in the vicinity of the light and then fly away, and others, 
which remain quietly enough half the night, fly away before 
daybreak. However, if the collector does not wish to 
sacrifice his whole night’s rest at the shrine of science, let 
him go to bed about midnight, and let him revisit his eol- 
lecting-room an hour or two before daybreak to secure any 
specimens which have come in during the night. On 
some nights moths come veritably in troops to the hght— 
Noctuae, Geometrae, Pyrales, Tortrices, and Tineae—it is 
a mad race which shall come in; but these gala nights are 
very scaree—sometimes there will not be above three such 
nights in a year. And here is shown the necessity for the 
collector, who wishes to attract insects by light, to attend 
systematically, for the good nights cannot be distinguished 
by our senses from the bad ones, and if he only lights up 
now and then, instead of regularly, he will be almost sure 
to miss the good nights. I once knew a continuous fort- 
night of good nights. When the small Psychodae come in 
great numbers, so as to blacken the windows and ceiling of 
the collecting-room, it is almost an infallible sign that the 
moths are coming in numbers.”’ 
Having considered some of the best methods for the 
collection and observation of the perfect insect, we will now 
turn to the scarcely less important question of the rearing 
of larvae. It was well remarked by Dr. H. G. Knaggs that 
‘**breeding’ is perhaps the most deeply interesting of all 
the charming occupations to which the student of ento- 
mology is liable; for whether we regard it from an instruc- 
tive point of view, or pursue it from the simple love of 
contemplating creation’s wonders, or whether we have an 
eye merely to quantity and quality of specimens, it is in 
any case an equally profitable employment.’’ 
To obtain a full knowledge of any insect’s economy we 
must start with the egg. Although eggs of certain com- 

I—COLLECTING AND 


OBSERVING. 
mon species of Lepidoptera may sometimes be found at 
large, a much simpler and more reliable method of obtain- 
ing them is to capture a female moth or butterfly, and 
endeavour to induce her to deposit her eggs in captivity. 
For this purpose a somewhat worn specimen is preferable 
to a fresh individual, as the chances are that the eggs from 
a fairly old female will have been fertilised. Some species 
ean of course be induced to pair in captivity when 
fertile ova will naturally result. In the case of most female 
moths eggs may be obtained by simply enclosing the 
insect in a large chip box with a little honey, but an addi- 
tional inducement may be offered by introducing a leaf of 
the foodplant as well. Butterflies are much more difficult 
to manage in this respect, as they require sunshine, and 
if this be admitted into an unventilated box a speedy death 
of the inmates will ensue. It is, however, occasionally 
possible to follow up and watch a female butterfly deposit- 
ing her eggs in the open, when the collector can of course 
afterwards secure them. I have often observed Vanessa 
gonerilla engaged in laying her eggs on stinging nettles and 
subsequently found the eggs. 
For rearing young larve just out of the egg, or the 
larve of minute moths, the largest size (three inches in 
diameter) glass topped boxes are very suitable. The chip 
box, in which the female has laid her eggs, can be broken 
up and the portions to which the eggs are attached placed 
in the glass topped box and carefully watched. If un- 
known or imperfectly described, the egg should be viewed 
under a suitable magnifier and a description made, and the 
same procedure followed in regard to the larva. As.soon 
as the eggs hatch a few leaves of the food plant must be 
introduced. If the food plant is unknown, the habits of 
the allied species should be looked up, and a food plant 
supplied which is likely to be correct. A special note 
should always be taken as to whether the young larve eat 
their eggshells. In about three weeks’ time the larve will 
probably be large enough to transfer to a breeding cage. 
Suitable cages may be obtained from the regular dealers, or 
they may be constructed by the collector. They should be 
of various sizes, according to the number of larve to be 
reared, and provided with fine gauze or perforated zine 
ventilators. Sufficient glass should be employed in their 
construction to admit of a full view of the interior, and 
all openings must, of course, be securely closed in order to 
prevent the escape of any larva. <A sprig of the food plant 
should be supplied, fixed in a bottle of water, and a small 
stone ink bottle is very suitable for this purpose. It should 
be well plugged around the stem of the food plant, so that 
the caterpillars cannot crawl down into the water and 
drown themselves. The habits of all larve under observa- 
tion, especially if not previously known, should be carefully 
recorded in the entomological diary. Also their appear- 
ance described, if possible, at each moult. 
A great many larve bury themselves in the earth, 
prior to undergoing their transformation into the pupa, and 
it will therefore be necessary to place a shallow jar of earth 

