ROUND THE YEAR

A SERIES OF

SHORT NATURE-STUDIES

BY

PROFESSOR L. C. MIALL, F.R.S.

WITH ILLUSTRATIONS chiefly BY A. R. HAMMOND, F.L.S.

London

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED

NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

The right of Translation and Reproduction is reserved

PREFACE

I HAVE given the title of "Round the Year" to a series of sketches suggested by the natural events of the year 1895. The principles of selection have been simple: I have written upon things which happened to interest me at the time, which seemed to admit of popular treatment, and which had not been fully discussed, so far as I knew, in elementary books. Another naturalist would have

made a different choice; all the naturalists in the world could not exhaust the subject.

The readers whom I hope to find are observers (especially young observers) of out-of-door nature, teachers of elementary science, and all who care for Live Natural History. L. C. M.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

"Man sieht nur was man weiss "-Insects and Plants in MidWinter-White of Selborne-Snow-flakes-Buried in the Snow -Birds in Mid-Winter-The Depth to which the Ground Freezes -The Great Frost of 1895-Under the Crags—Phi and Theta— Which are the Wettest Months ?-Animals with and without Combs-The Moon-Spring Crocuses-Catkins-The Oil-Beetle (Meloe) The Corn-rigs of Beamsley Fell-The Cuckoo-Buds— The Botany of a Railway Station-Summer Twilight-Midsummer Blooms-Hay-time-The History of the Cabbage White Butterflies-Cabbages and Turnips - Duckweed Routine WeedsMoorland Plants-The Love of Mountains-The Reversed SpiralGossamer-Flower-haunting Insects-Tennyson as a Naturalist— The Structure of a Feather-The Fall of a Leaf-Autumn Winds and Winter Floods-The Shortest Day of the Year.

GUARDIAN.-"Would that all books on subjects classed as scientific were written in this pleasant style-a style breathing human sympathy and the strong desire to rouse in other minds the spirit of wholesome investigation of the wonders and mysteries belonging to the things about us.'

RURAL WORLD.-"A delightful companion, and we doubt if a more suitable gift book will be published this season.

MANCHESTER GUARDIAN.—“Though intended especially for young observers, the reader of larger growth will find much that is both useful and interesting if he be, as the author says, one who cares for 'live natural history."

SPEAKER.-"It is a charming book written with the utmost simplicity by a man of the highest scientific attainments, and it therefore possesses merits which are incontestaole."

SATURDAY REVIEW.-"Though there is not a dry passage in the book, the insight and research displayed are remarkable, and none of the many subjects can be said to be treated superficially."

PALL MALL GAZETTE.-"We have rarely met with a more fascinating book for fresh young minds: it is one among a thousand.”

THE NATURAL HISTORY OF

AQUATIC INSECTS

BY PROFESSOR L. C. MIALL, F.R.S.

With Illustrations by A. R. HAMMOND, F.L.S.

London

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED

NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

EXTRACT FROM PREFACE

I HAVE here attempted to help those naturalists, especially those young naturalists, who take delight in observing the structure and habits of living animals. It has also been my hope that I might do something to revive an interest in the writings of certain old zoologists-Swammerdam, Réaumur, Lyonnet, and De Geer-who are at present unjustly neglected; I have tried to carry on as well as to popularise their work. It would be much if I could persuade some few working naturalists to lay aside their technical lists and records of parish distribution, and study the works of Nature with open eyes, seeking above all things to know more of life in its infinitely varied forms.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I. Aquatic Beetles.-II. Flies with Aquatic Larvæ.—III. Aquatic Hymenoptera.-IV. Aquatic Caterpillars.-V. CaddisWorms (Trichoptera).-VI. Sialidæ.-VII. Perlidæ.-VIII. MayFlies (Ephemerida).-IX. Dragon-Flies (Odonata).-X. PondSkaters, Water-Scorpions, and Water-Boatmen (Rhynchota).XI. The Water Spring-Tail (Podura).-XII. Insects of the SeaShore.-XIII. The Contrivances of Aquatic Insects.

PALL MALL GAZETTE.-"It is an inspiring discussion of the numerous subtle expedients by which the essentially aërial organism of the insects adapts itself to an amphibious existence. Problem after problem is handled clearly and skilfully, and Professor Miall shows himself possessed of that rare gift of literary colour by which, while developing the logical process with absolute accuracy, the writer can yet keep before us the running streams, the shady pools, the hum of wings, and the stir of the wind-swept reeds amid which the practical solution to his problems is worked out, summer after summer."

NATURE.-"Prof. Miall deserves praise for the admirable account he has put together of the insect inhabitants of our lakes, ponds, and watercourses.'

WESTMINSTER GAZETTE.-"Can be cordially recommended to any who may wish to take up, or who may have already taken up a singularly fascinating study.'

NATURE STUDY

IN

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

A MANUAL FOR TEACHERS

BY

MRS. LUCY LANGDON WILLIAMS WILSON, PH.D.

HEAD OF THE BIOLOGICAL LABORATORIES IN THE PHILADELPHIA NORMAL
SCHOOL FOR GIRLS, AND IN CHARGE OF THE NATURE WORK IN

THE SCHOOL OF OBSERVATION AND PRACTICE CONNECTED
WITH THE NORMAL SCHOOL

WITH A PREFACE BY

FRANCIS W. PARKER

HEAD OF THE COOK COUNTY NORMAL SCHOOL, CHICAGO, ILL.

London

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED

NEW YORK: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

All rights reserved

THIS book is an outgrowth of a rich, varied, and thoughtful experience with child nature and the nature that surrounds the child. Mrs. Wilson recognizes the truth that children have a deep, strong, instinctive love for all things that live and all things that support life. The teacher should develop instinct into habit by making spontaneity the basis of character.

Nature Study to-day is pioneer work. The prevailing methods of teaching nature are the old methods dominated by the delusion of logical sequence of isolated fact learning. Mrs. Wilson's plan is to study the child, understand his interests, and adapt conditions to his actual personal needs.

The old method is founded upon a rigid faith in the book and traditional processes; the new upon the divinity of the child and the influence of God's creations upon his growing mind. One method is fixed; the other is everlasting motion over the infinite line of unrealized possibilities. One method demands accurate imitation; the other, original discovery and creation. Under one method the teacher is a pedant; under the other, a student.

The pressing need of the hour is genuine students of education, teachers who bring to every child and every subject a mind full of desire to know, an abiding faith in boundless possibilities, a freshness of spirit that is in itself the most potent factor in education, a devotion that inspires new contributions to the unlimited science of teaching.

This book is such a contribution, and I am sure it will be a great help to many teachers who are struggling with the problem of Nature study.

FRANCIS W. PARKER.