328 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST 



society had reached its maximum of strength and activity. 

 By the kindness of two friends I am enabled to give some 

 idea of the subsequent development of the nest of Vespa 

 vulgaris. 



A September Nest. — At my request, Mr A. Macdonald 

 of Durris made a detailed census of a nest discovered by 

 him near Crathes and referred to in the ScottisJi Naturalist, 

 191 5, p. 312. The nest was that of Vespa vulgaris, and was 

 examined on the 24th of September 1915. 



The nest itself was found to be 9 ins. in diameter, and 

 the almost spherical cavity in which it hung, 1 1 ins. across. 

 The earth removed in this case must have been about 697 

 cub. ins. There were 6 cell-flats in the nest, with the follow- 

 ing diameters, beginning with the uppermost or oldest : — 

 1, 5 ins. by 4 ins. ; 2, 6\ ins. ; 3, 6\ ins. ; 4, 6i ins. ; 5, a 

 small comb built on to 4, 3 j ins. ; 6, 5^ ins. 



With great patience Mr Macdonald counted the adults 

 and immature stages about the nest or in the combs, with 

 these interesting results. There were in all 694 worker 

 wasps, and 503 larger individuals, either drones or queens — 

 a total of 1197 adults. In the combs, or fallen from them, 

 were found 652 larvse and 680 pupa;, while the remainder of 

 the 5312 cells which the combs were calculated to contain 

 were either empty or held unhatched eggs. 



It is clear from the details with which Mr Macdonald 

 has supplied me, that this nest had reached its limit of 

 growth, for no new cells were being added, and even of those 

 vacated by pupse the greater number were unoccupied by 

 eggs. 



This colony, however, by no means reaches the limit 

 attained by societies of Vespa vulgaris. Compared with a 

 nest of which Mr William Evans has given me particulars, 

 these July and September nests (with their totals of 4217 

 and 5312 cells from which, ere autumn frosts put an end to 

 all activity, some 10,000 to 15,000 wasps might have 

 hatched) seem mere villages to a great city. 



An October Nest. — The structure observed by Mr Evans 

 was an underground nest of Vespa viilgaris built in a garden 

 in Morningside, Edinburgh, and was examined in October 



