210 NATURAL HISTORY. [cH. XH. 



The preceding- {Jig. 1) is a figure of an ichneumon 

 of the first kind. The long- tail consists of three 

 hairs, as in the second figure ; the two lateral enclose 

 the middle one as in a sheath ; the central fillet is 

 round throughout the greater part of its length, but 

 at the end pointed like a pen, flattened and seiTated 

 as in the third figure. 



The following figure represents the short oviposi- 

 tors of those ichneumons which pierce the insect 

 only. It lies concealed in a groove under the ab- 

 domen. 



Reaumur gives the following account of the ope- 

 rations of the ichneumon {Comitator, F.) while 

 piercing the cell of that species of solitary wasp 

 which feeds its young with green caterpillars. He 

 had covered a wall with sandy mortar for the pur- 

 pose of enticing these wasps to make their nests 

 under his eye ; they did so in great numbers. 



" I saw," says he, " this ichneumon at the very 

 moment it settled on the spot under which so many 

 little animals were hidden. Its long tail, M^hich it 

 dragged after it, appeared to form but one thread, 

 though in reality it was composed of three. It soon, 

 however, put it to use : it showed me that it was not 

 only capable of raising or depressing it, but also that 

 it could bend it in various directions, and that in dif- 

 ferent portions of its length." It bent its tail, and 

 carried it under its body, so as to protrude it consi- 

 derably beyond its own head ; and it directed it to 

 the spot which its instinct pointed out as the place in 

 which the young wasp was concealed. 



" Although," continues Reaumur, " the creature 

 did not seem disturbed by my observations, still I 

 could not see whether the serrated point protruded 



