INSECTS.

Every country of the world is replete with this extensive and

interesting class of beings, whose forms are infinitely diversified, and

whose species are the most numerous of any class in the animal kingdom.

Before any attempt is made to collect insects, certain apparatus must be

provided, not only to enable us to secure them, but also to preserve

them after they are caught.

First, then, we must be provided with a quantity of wooden boxes, from

18 to 20 inches long, 15 to 17 inches wide, and two inches deep. These

should have well-filled lids, with hinges, and fastened by a wire catch,

or small bolt. The bottom should have a layer of cork, about the sixth

of an inch in thickness, which should be fixed down with very strong

paste, made according to our recipe; and also some wire nails, to

prevent it from springing. Over the cork should be pasted white paper.

The box should be anointed inside with oil of petroleum. If that cannot

be procured, make an infusion of strong aromatic plants, such as

cinnamon, aloes, thyme, laurel, sage, rosemary, or cloves, and wash the

inside with it. A small packet of camphor should be wrapped in a piece

of rag, and deposited in a corner of the box.

We must also be provided with a quantity of _insect pins_ of different

sizes, corresponding with the size of the insect. The pins used for

setting should be longer than those which are taken to the field.

Bottles, with mouths from an inch and a quarter to two inches in

diameter, must also be procured, and these must be three-fourths full of

spirits, such as weak brandy, rum, gin, or whisky.

=Hunting-Box.= We must, besides, have what is termed a hunting-box, for

carrying in our pocket, when seeking after insects. This should be made

of strong pasteboard or chip, for lightness, or, if this is no

consideration, of tin. It must be of an oblong-oval shape, rounded at

the ends, for the convenience of the pocket. It should be from eight to

ten inches long, four to five inches wide, and two-and-a-half to three

inches deep. It must have a layer of cork both in the bottom and top of

the lid, inside for attaching insects to, when caught during the day.

The larger insects are placed at the bottom, and the smaller ones on the

lid.

=The Entomological.= We next procure a net, as in figure 26, constructed

similar to a bat-fowling net. This is either made of fine gauze or

coarse muslin; it may either be green or white—the latter is the best

for observing small insects which may be caught; the green, however, is

better adapted for catching moths. The net-rods should be made of

hickory, beech, hazel, or holly; they ought to be five feet in length,

quite round, smooth, and tapering to an obtuse point, as at figure 24;

the oblique cross-piece at the point should be of cane, and fitted into

the angular ferrule; the rod must be divided into three or four pieces,

so that it may be taken asunder and carried in the pocket; the upper

part of each joint must have a ferrule affixed to it, for the purpose of

articulating the other pieces. Each joint should have a notch or check

to prevent the rod from twisting.

The net itself, figure 31, must have a welting all around it, doubled so

as to form a groove for the reception of the rods. In the center of the

upper part or point it must have a small piece of chamois leather, so as

to form a kind of hinge; this must be bound round the welting and

divided in the middle, so as to prevent the cross pieces from slipping

over each other; it shows about four inches of the gauze turned up, so

as to form a bag; there are strings for the purpose of passing through

the staple, to which the net is firmly drawn on each side. When the net

is used a handle is to be held in each hand.

If it is intended to take insects on the wing, by means of this net, for

which it is admirably adapted, it may be folded together in an instant.

If the gauze is fine enough, and preserved whole, even the smallest

insect cannot escape. It may be also applied in catching coleopterous

insects, which are never on the wing, as well as caterpillars. When used

for this purpose the entomologist must hold it expanded under trees,

while another must beat the branches with a stick. Great numbers of both

insects and larvæ will fall in the gauze, and by this means many

hundreds may be captured in a day.

Another method is to spread a large table-cloth under trees and bushes,

and then beat them with a stick. An umbrella reversed has frequently

been used for the same purpose. Bose, the celebrated naturalist, used

this last method—he held the umbrella in the left hand, while he beat

the bushes with the other.

=The Hoop or Aquatic Net, Figure 26.= This net is used for capturing

aquatic insects, which are either lurking at the bottom, swimming

through the liquid element, or adhering to plants. It may also be

successfully used in sweeping amongst grass and low herbage for

coleopterous insects and others which are generally to be found in such

situations. The socket, for the handle, may be made of such dimensions

as will answer the second joint of the entomological net-rod, which will

save carrying another handle; or a walking-stick may be made to fit it.

=A Phial, Figure 33.= This may either be made of tin or crystal, and

used for collecting coleopterous and other creeping insects. The mouth

should be nearly an inch wide, and a cork exactly fitted to it, in the

center of which must be inserted a small quill, to afford air, and

inserted about an inch beyond the cork, to prevent the insects from

escaping. If the bottle is made of tin, and of a larger size, a tin tube

must be introduced into its side, and terminating externally at the

surface.

=A Digger, Figure 28.= The instrument is either made of iron or steel,

and is about six or seven inches in length, fixed into a turned wooden

handle. It is used for collecting the pupæ of lepidopterous insects, at

the roots and in the clefts of the bark of trees; and also for pulling

off the bark, particularly from decayed trees, under which many curious

and rare insects are frequently found. It is most useful with an

arrow-headed point.

=Setting Needles, Figure 29.= Fitted into a small wooden handle, the

needle itself should be about three inches long, and about the thickness

of a small darning-needle, slightly bent from about the middle. Figure

30 is a straight needle which is used for extending the parts of

insects; at one end of the handle is the needle, and at the other a

camel-hair pencil, which is used for removing any dirt or dust which may

be on the insects. The pencil may be occasionally drawn through the

lips, brought to a fine point, and used for disposing the antennæ and

palpi of insects of the minute kinds.

=Brass Pliers, Figure 25.= These are used for picking up small insects

from the roots of grass, etc. They may also be used for laying hold of

small insects, while they are yet free and not set up.

=Fan Forceps.= This very useful instrument to the entomologist, must be

made of steel or iron, and about eight or ten inches in length; its

general construction is like that of a pair of scissors, and it is held

and used in the same manner. Towards the points are formed a pair of

fans, which may either be square, oval, hexagonal, or octagonal in the

edges, and the centers covered with fine gauze. The general size of the

fans is from four to six inches. These are used for capturing bees,

wasps, and muscæ. They are also used for catching butterflies, moths,

and sphinges. If an insect is on a leaf, both leaf and insect may be

inclosed within the fans; or if they are on a wall or the trunk of a

tree, they may be very easily secured by them.

If a butterfly, sphinx, or moth, are captured by the forceps, while yet

between the fans, they should be pressed pretty smoothly with the

thumb-nail, on the thorax or body, taking care, however, not to crush

it. It may then be taken into the hand, and a pin passed through the

thorax, and then stuck into the bottom of your hunting-box.

=Quills.= These are of great use in carrying minute insects. They should

be neatly stopped with cork and cement at one end, the other end should

be provided with a small movable cork for a stopper. Each end should be

wrapped carefully round with a silk thread waxed, to prevent them from

splitting.

=Pocket Larvæ-Box.= For collecting caterpillars, this box is very

essential: it consists merely of a chip-box, with a hole pierced in the

center of the top and bottom, and covered with gauze, for the admission

of air. It will be necessary to put into the box some of the leaves on

which the larvæ feed, as they are very voracious, and cannot long exist

without food.

=Pill-Boxes.= No entomologist should be without five or six dozen of

these useful articles. They are of great value in collecting the smaller

species of lepidopterous insects, such as the tinea, etc., and only one

specimen should be put in each box, as, if more than one, they are apt

to injure each other’s wings by beating against each other.

=Setting Boards.= These must be made of deal board, from a foot to

fifteen inches long, and eight or ten inches broad, with a piece of wood

run across the ends, to prevent them from warping. They are covered with

cork, which must be perfectly smooth on the surface, with white paper

pasted over it. Several boards will be required, by persons who are

making collections, as some of the insects take a considerable time to

dry, so that they may be fit for introducing into a cabinet.

The boards should be kept in a frame made for the purpose. It should

consist of a top, bottom, and two sides; the back and front should have

the frames of doors attached by small hinges, and their centers covered

with fine gauze, for the free passage of air; the sides should have

small pieces of wood projecting from them, for the boards to rest on;

which should be at such a distance from each other that the pins may not

be displaced in pushing the boards in or drawing them out. The frame

should be placed in a dry, airy situation.

=Braces.= These are merely small pieces of card, cut in the form

exhibited, Fig. 36, attached to the butterfly and other insects; and

also at Fig. 39. They are pinned down on the insects, to keep their

wings, etc., in a proper state, till they acquire a set.