162 SOCIAL LIFE IN THE INSECT WORLD 



those already presented. In the cages in which various 

 predatory Hymenoptera whose warHke habits I am 

 studying are confined, waiting until I have procured the 

 desired prey — not always an easy proceeding — I have 

 planted a few heads of flowers and a couple of thistle- 

 heads sprinkled with drops of honey, renewed at need. On 

 these my captives feed. In the case of the Philanthus 

 the honeyed flowers, although welcomed, are not in- 

 dispensable. It is enough if from time to time I place in 

 the cage a few living bees. Half a dozen a day is about 

 the proper allowance. With no other diet than the 

 honey extracted from their victims I keep my specimen* 

 of Philanthus for a fortnight and three weeks. 



So much is plain : in a state of freedom, when oc- 

 casion offers, the Philanthus must kill on her own 

 account as she does in captivity. The Odynerus asks 

 nothing of the Chrysomela but a simple condiment, the 

 aromatic juice of the anal pouch ; the Philanthus 

 demands a full diet, or at least a notable supplement 

 thereto, in the form of the contents of the stomach. 

 What a hecatomb of bees must not a colony of these 

 pirates sacrifice for their personal consumption, to say 

 nothing of their stores of provisions ! I recommend the 

 Philanthus to the vengeance of apiarists. 



For the moment we will not look further into the 

 original causes of the crime. Let us consider matters as 

 we know them, with all their real or apparent atrocity. 

 In order to nourish herself the Philanthus levies tribute 

 upon the crop of the bee. This being granted, let us 

 consider the method of the aggressor more closely. She 

 does not paralyse its captives according to the customary 

 rites of the predatory insects; she kills them. Why ? To 



