266 



ELEMENTARY ENTOMOLOGY 



well aware. The adults are predacious and feed their young on 

 insects which have been masticated. Not infrequently, where an 



outbreak of caterpillars occurs, wasps 

 will be seen carrying them off to their 

 nests in considerable numbers ; we 

 have observed them at work on the 

 cotton boll-worm and leaf-worms in 

 the South. But two genera are com- 

 mon in the East. Polistes are black 

 ringed with yellow, or are brownish, 

 and have long, spindle-shaped abdo- 

 mens. Their nests are composed of a 



FIG. 423. White-faced wasp 

 (Vespa i tic 1 1 la la) 



single comb and are attached by a short stem. The genus Vespa 

 includes the hornets and yellow-jackets, which are black, spotted 

 or banded with yellow, or yellowish-white, 

 with a short, stout body, and the abdomen 

 attached by a very short peduncle. Their 

 nests are formed of several layers of combs, 

 all of which are covered with a waterproof 

 covering of paper, made from weatherworn 

 wood of stumps, trees, fences, and buildings. 

 The nests are gradually enlarged, new combs 

 being added and the 

 outer envelope being 

 enlarged to cover 

 them. The males and 

 workers die in the fall, 

 and the females hiber- 

 nate over winter and 

 start a new colony in 

 the spring. 



3. BEES (APINA) 



Most of our com- 

 mon bees are readily 

 distinguished as such 

 by the general shape 

 and hairy clothing of 



a 



FIG. 424. a, mouth-parts of a short-tongued bee 

 (Prosopis pubescens) (note short, broad, flaplike 

 tongue, or glossa) ; />, mouth-parts of a long-tongued 

 bee (Anthophora pilipes) (note greatly extended 

 tongue). (Much enlarged) 



(After Sharpe, from Kellogg) 



