Directions for Collecting and Preserving Insects. Charles V. Riley
stick in the same way as the butterfly net. The bag need not be as long as in the butterfly net, about 18 inches being sufficient, but it should be of stout cotton or linen and the bottom should preferably be sewed in as a round piece, so as to avoid corners. Care needs to be bestowed on the fastening of the bag on the ring, for by the use of the net the part of the bag sewed around the ring is soon chafed through. To prevent this a strip of leather is sewed over the cotton along the rim, but since even this must be frequently renewed some other devices are used to give greater durability to the net. In the pattern of a beating-net originally sold by Deyrolle in Paris, the metal ring was flattened, with the narrow edge pointing upwards and the broad side pierced with holes at suitable intervals and grooved on the outer surface between the holes. The bag is sewed on to the inner side of the ring by stout twine, which passes from one hole to the next and is thus prevented from coming in contact with obstructive objects, and only the bottom of the bag wears and will need to be occasionally mended or renewed.
Fig. 48.—Beating net, opened and attached to handle,
with frame of same folded.
(After Kiesenwetter.)
Another method of preventing the tearing of the upper rim of the bag is described and illustrated in Kiesenwetter's useful volume “Der Naturaliensammler” from which I shall frequently have occasion to quote. In this net the main ring is of rounded iron wire on which a number of brass rings are slipped. These must be but little larger than the diameter of the wire. These little brass rings should not be more than 30 mm. or at most 40 mm., distant from each other, and to them the upper rim of the bag is sewed with very strong twine and is thus protected from wear and tear. The handle or stick of the net should be firmly and solidly attached to the ring and should be stout and not liable to break. I prefer a rather short stick, say not longer than two feet.
I figure herewith the ring of a very convenient net for sweeping or beating purposes. It has the advantage of being for sale on the market, and in fact is an ordinary fishing dip net of small size. It is hinged in three places, as shown in the figure, and folds into very small compass. When unfolded and brought together, it screws into a ferrule which may be attached to a cane or a special handle.
Fig. 49.—Folding ring
for beating net (original).
The beating net can be successfully used at almost every season of the year. Even on warm days in winter time many specimens can be swept from the dead grass. So long as the dew is on the plants or in rainy weather no beating should be attempted, as the more delicate species are more or less spoiled by the moisture. After one or two minutes' sweeping the contents should be examined. Those insects which are quick to take wing or which are good runners should first receive attention; the less active can then be examined more at leisure. The desiderata are then disposed of, the rest thrown away, and the beating renewed.
The beating net is an important instrument for collecting all insects excepting mature Lepidoptera, which are apt to get rubbed. Many larvæ, especially of Lepidoptera, are caught by beating and are mostly in good condition, but it is usually difficult to ascertain the food plant.
Fig. 50.—The Water Net.
(After Packard.)
The Water Net.—The numerous insects or insect larvæ which live in the water can not be conveniently collected without the use of a net, except where they live in small shallow streams or creeks with gravelly or stony bottoms. A suitable water net can readily be made by using the frame of the beating net and attaching to it a rather short bag of some coarse material, e.g., “grass cloth,” coarse millinet. The mode of operation with this net is very simple: if some insect is seen swimming in the water, the net is carefully brought beneath the specimen, which is thus lifted out of the water. Most water insects are, however, not seen swimming about freely, but hide amid the various plants, mosses, etc., or in the mud at the base of the plants, and they can best be captured by dragging the net through these plants. When taken from the water the net is more or less filled with mud and parts of plants, and the water must be allowed to run out and the contents of the net spread out on a cloth or on a flat stone, if such be at hand. The insects are at first not readily seen, but after a short while they begin to emerge from the mud and crawl about, and can readily be taken up with a forceps.
Fig. 51.—Small Water
Dip Net (original).
Water Dip Net.—The small water sieve, shown in the accompanying illustration (Fig. 51), and somewhat resembling in appearance a jockey cap, is frequently of service in collecting the larvæ of aquatic insects, especially where it is necessary to scrape submerged stones or timbers. In use it is fastened on the end of a cane or stick, and can be easily made by any tinsmith.
The Umbrella.—The umbrella, as already stated, is one of the most useful instruments of the collector, since it enables him to obtain all those numerous insects which live on the branches of trees, on shrubs, and on other large plants. A common stout cotton umbrella is sufficiently large, but is liable to get out of joint, and moreover the specimens hide themselves under the ribs. It is well, therefore, to have the inside of such umbrella lined along the ribs with muslin, or some other material, preferably of a light color. An umbrella specially constructed for entomological purposes is offered for sale by E. Deyrolle, in Paris. It resembles a stoutly built common umbrella, but has the inside lined with white linen and the handle has a joint near the middle, so that the umbrella can be more conveniently held and more readily packed away. The opened and inverted umbrella is held with the left hand under the branch which the collector intends to relieve of its entomological inhabitants, while the right hand, armed with a heavy stick, is free to properly jar the branch. Care must be taken in the jarring, lest the insects are knocked beyond the circumference of the umbrella. The larger the umbrella the greater are the chances of making rich captures, but the more difficult it becomes to manipulate, especially where the woods are dense or where there are many vines, etc. In the absence of an umbrella the butterfly net or the beating net can be used.
Fig. 52.—The Umbrella and its mode of use. (After Kiesenwetter.)
A drawback to collecting with the umbrella is that many insects take wing and escape before being secured. This can hardly be avoided, and experienced collectors, in southern countries more particularly, have found it advisable to discard the umbrella and to use in its stead a very large butterfly net, 2 feet or more in diameter.
The Beating Cloth.—A very simple substitute for the umbrella, and one which can always be carried without inconvenience, may here be described. It consists of a piece of common unbleached cotton cloth (1 yard square), to each corner of which a loop of stout twine is sewed. Upon reaching the woods, two straight sticks, each about 5 feet in length and not too heavy, but also not so small as to be liable to break or to bend too easily, are cut from a convenient bush. The sticks are placed crosswise over the cloth and fastened to the loops at the four ends. This is easily and quickly done by making sliding loops of the simple loops. The cloth is thus kept spread out between the sticks, and forms a very good substitute for an umbrella. In beating, the sticks are held at their intersecting points. When not in use one of the loops is detached from the stick and the instrument can be rolled up and carried under one arm without seriously interfering with other operations of the collector. When laid on the ground, with the sticks on the underside, this simple instrument may be advantageously used as a cloth on which to sift or examine fungi, moss, pieces of bark, etc., and since the cloth is always tightly expanded, it offers a smooth and level surface, where examination of various