WASPS, SOCIAL AND SOLITARY 



France, is most interesting. He says that the yellow- 

 winged species, living in colonies, first digs her nest 

 and then secures her cricket, which is brought, on the 

 wing, to the neighborhood of the burrow, the last part 

 of the journey being accomplished on foot. The cricket 

 is. dragged by one of the antennae, and is not left until 

 the nest is reached. It is then placed so that the antennae 

 reach precisely to the opening, and there it is left while 

 the wasp descends hurriedly into the depths of the bur- 

 row. In a few seconds she reappears, showing her head 

 outside, seizes the antennae of the cricket, and drags it 

 below. These manoeuvres are repeated with a striking 

 degree of invariability. 



The other Sphex first secures her prey, which is too 

 large and heavy to be carried far, and then digs her 

 nest in the neighborhood of the capture. This being 

 done, she returns to her victim, and straddling it drags 

 it by one or both of the antennae. Sometimes the whole 

 journey is accomplished at once, but oftener the wasp 

 suddenly drops her burden and runs rapidly to her 

 nest. Perhaps it seems to her that the entrance is 

 not large enough to accommodate a creature of such 

 size ; perhaps she imagines some imperfections of detail 

 which would impede the process of storing it up. The 

 work is retouched, the door^^ay enlarged, the threshold 



70 



