WASPS, SOCIAL AND SOLITARY 



a lot of wood dust out of the hole. This was spread out 

 by means of legs and mandibles, and was then blown 

 away by the fanning wings of the little worker, who cir- 

 cled about just above the ground until the last grain had 

 disappeared. Here was another way of protecting the 

 home. The fresh dust might attract the attention of 

 some cuckoo-like insect who would lay her egg within ; 

 and therefore it was dispersed, just as Ammophila car- 

 ried out her pellet and flung it to a distance, and Sphcx 

 spread evenly over the ground the mass of earth that 

 she carried from her hole. 



After this series of actions had been repeated several 

 times the wasp flew away to hunt. We afterward found 

 that she had finished the third in a set of cells leading 

 from a main gallery. On her return we delayed her to 

 see what she was carr}'ing. She showed no fear, but 

 alighted close by, and while she was trying to transfer 

 to the third pair of legs the fly that she was clasping with 

 the second pair, it escaped and flew gayly away. Flies 

 are plenty, however, and she soon had another which 

 she was permitted to store ; and from that time she 

 worked busily until we left her at noon. It took her 

 from two to ten minutes to catch her fly, and at each 

 return two or three minutes were spent in the nest. On 

 opening her tunnel some days later, we found within 



98 



