THE SPIDEB RAVISHERS. 135 



and excavated in an entirely new direction. They probably 

 derived some advant-age from this variation for we saw four in 

 succession follow the same plan, which certainly appeared to be 

 an intelligent adaptation of means to ends. 



We once saw a wasp of this species digging her nest on the 

 Bembex field. When finished it was a large hole which could 

 not have been distinguished from those' of spinolae, which were 

 open all about, for the weather was bright and sunny. She 

 went away and soon reappeared with her spider, which was 

 dropped three feet away while she ran to make sure that all was 

 right, and now followed something that we had never seen be- 

 fore — she could not find her nest. She flew, she ran, she scur- 

 ried here and there, but she had utterly lost track of it. She 

 approached it several times, but there are no landmarks on the 

 Bembex field. We have often wondered how they find their 

 own places. After five minutes our wasp flew back to look it 

 her spider, and then returned to her search. She now began to 

 run into the Bemhex holes, but soon came out again even when 

 not chased out by the proprietor. Suddenly it seemed to strike 

 her that this was going to be a prolonged affair, and that her 

 treasure was exposed to danger, and hurrying back she dragged 

 it into the grass at the edge of the field, where it was hidden. 

 Again she resumed the hunt, flying wildly, now, all over the 

 field, running into wrong holes and even kicking out earth as 

 though she thought of appropriating them, but soon passing on. 

 Once more she became anxious about the spider, and canying it 

 up on to a plant suspended it there. Xow she seemed deter- 

 mined to take possession of eveiy hole that she went into, dig- 

 ging quite persistently in each, but ' then giving it up. One in 

 particular that was close by the spider, seemed to attract her and 

 she worked at it so long that we thought she had adopted it, for 

 it seemed to be unoccupied. At last, however, she made up 

 her mind that all further search was hopeless and that she had 

 better begin de novo, and forty minutes from the time that we 

 saw her first she started a new nest close to the spider, as though 



