Butterflies and Moths (British)Furneaux, William S.
Science
Butterflies and Moths (British)
Furneaux, William S.
Butterflies -- Great Britain; Moths -- Great Britain
Two such lights are sometimes a very decided advantage--one quite
outside the window to attract the moths from all possible points, and
then another near the middle of the room to invite them inside. Whether
you use either one or two lights, always see that it or they are so
surrounded by a screen that the moths cannot by any possibility rush
into the flame. There is nothing better for this purpose than a covering
of light gauze, for this is not only a barrier for the prevention of the
suicidal tendencies of the insects, but it also gives a good foothold to
those who would like to rest and enjoy the luminous feast.
You will soon begin to learn that moths, like ourselves, exhibit great
differences in their ways of enjoying their festal moments. Some will
satisfy themselves by flying _near_ the light in almost a straight
course, hardly slackening their speed as they pass; or will, perhaps,
make a hurried curve round the light and then pass on at once about
other business. To catch these you must be always on the alert, with net
in hand, ready to make a dash at the right moment. But many will make
straight for the flame, and then, finding a barrier in the form of gauze
or glass, will either flutter round and round as if dissatisfied with
your attempt to save them from an untimely end, or else settle quietly
on the screen to enjoy the brightness for a long period. The flutterers
are usually easily covered by a glass or the open cyanide bottle, and as
for those that settle down quietly, you can take them at your leisure.
It will not do for a collector to depend solely on this method of
obtaining moths, but at times when either his duties or the bad weather
keeps him at home it affords him a means of capturing a few specimens
that otherwise would have been missed. He may be even so busily engaged
in other matters that he cannot afford the time to stand and watch with
net in hand, but the insects that fly into his room and dance round the
gas jet or inquisitively examine the white surface of the ceiling are
easily netted or boxed without much loss of time.
The chances of success at this kind of work will vary considerably with
the aspect, the season, and the weather. If your window opens on a large
flower or fruit garden, on a patch of wooded country with plenty of
underwood, a piece of waste ground overgrown with rank vegetation, or a
stretch of heath or moor, then you may expect a very large number of
visitors; but if you are situated on a level and barren country, or in
the dense atmosphere of a thickly populated district, you must not
reckon on many intruders.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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