williams: larrid^ of kansas. 189 



Habits of the Species. 

 Typical Larridx, or Larrime. 



(Witlt only one pevfei t ocelhis.) 

 Larra aniericana Cresson. 



The above insect, as far as I can ascertain, is the same as 

 Larva analis, our large shining species. Hartman (Bull. Univ. 

 of Tex., No. 65, pp. 61-62; 1905) has found americana pro- 

 visioning its several-celled burrow with crickets. The wasp 

 has a peculiar way, we are informed, of digging her ne?t, 

 backing out and using her head and fore legs as a kind of 

 scraper. The insect is rare in Kansas, where nothing was 

 observed of its habits. 



Notogonia argeiifata Bve. (Fig. 118, egg in situ.) 



This rather long-legged wasp was studied on the Univer- 

 sity campus, at Lawrence, at the end of August, 1911. Con- 

 siderable time was spent in locating the burrow, but the first 

 insects observed gave me no results aside from noting that, 

 from their habit of investigating holes and crannies, the prey 

 should probably be one of the Gryllidfe. This surmise was soon 

 verified when at 2 P. M. September 2 a Notogonia was seen fly- 

 ing about the stone steps of the Museum building, carrying un- 

 der her body a young G/y^i!»,s about the size of an ordinary 

 Nemobius cricket. She let go her prey at my approach, but 

 soon grabbed it again by the base of the antennae, and, taking 

 wing, flew about the steps and cement walk in a rather unde- 

 cided manner. She appeared either to have lost her nest or 

 to be searching for one, for she fu'sed around for fiftsen min- 

 utes, never kttini £0 of her burden the while, attempting at 

 t'mes to enter cracks which were not sufficiently spacious to 

 admit both cricket and wasp at one time. Finally, at 2 : 15 P. M , 

 she dropped the Grylltis and entered the crack, but on coming 

 out after a stay of half an hour the orthopteron was totally 

 ignored. At about this^time another wasp of the species was 

 flying about near by. She would alight, p'ck up a pebble in 

 her mandibles, to drop it again, having to all appearances no 

 definite aim. At 3:10 P. M. a th'rd Notogcnia was seen to fly 

 heavily with a cricket about as large as herself, alight near a 

 crack in the cement walk, and run into this crevice with her 

 prey beneath her. Th^s being forbidden ground for the knife 

 and trowel, I searched the earthy slopes along a very sm-^ll 

 stream which flowed through the golf links near by. 



