Hints on Rearing Larve 
either made or bought from the dealers, They need 
not be elaborate, but they must be kept clean and well 
aired, At least once a day go over the food-supply, 
remove all withered or decayed leaves, and sweep out 
all the “frass.” If this rule is rigidly followed, failure 
to rear the larve safely will seldom occur. Coconut 
fibre mixed with sand forms an ideal medium for larve 
to pupatein; it holds moisture without getting mouldy. 
But there are many ways of obtaining larve besides 
hatching them from the egg, and perhaps the most 
popular and efficient is known as “beating.” All that 
is required for this purpose is an old umbrella; patch 
up any rents.or holes that may be in it, cut off the 
handle level with the spokes when closed, and also the 
part projecting at the bottom; this reduces the total 
length to something like 24 inches. Pushed into a cover 
like those used for fishing-rods, it can be carried strapped 
on the back when not in use. Its use hardly needs 
description. Holding the inverted umbrella under 
bushes and lower branches of large trees, or under over- 
hanging tufts of heather on a hillside, the vegetation 
above the umbrella is smartly beaten with a stout stick, 
and the larve present will fall into the trap. Suppose 
you are among some young Birches, with scrub Oak 
and Pine, confine your attention to the Birch first, and 
thus you will keep all your Birch-feeding caterpillars by 
themselves ; eventually you can turn your attention to 
the Oak, and lastly to the Pine. Keeping the various 
Species separate is worth the trouble, In any case, 
never overcrowd your larve in tins; you have only to 
6 
