The Hunting Wasps 



fair days of illusion, of faith in the future, 

 where are you now? 



I am sure that my readers will welcome an 

 extract from the essay that formed the start- 

 ing-point of my own researches, especially as 

 this extract is necessary for the due under- 

 standing of what follows. I will therefore 

 let the master speak for himself, abridging 

 his words in parts: ^ 



" In all insect history, I can think of no 

 more curious, no more extraordinary fact than 

 that which I am about to describe to you. It 

 concerns a species of Cerceris who feeds her 

 family on the most sumptuous species of the 

 genus Buprestis. Allow me to make you 

 share the vivid impressions which I owe to 

 my study of this Hymenopteron's habits. 



" In July 1839, a friend living in the coun- 

 try sent me two specimens of Buprestis bi- 

 fasciata, an insect at that time new to my 

 collection, informing me that a kind of Wasp 

 that was carrying one of these pretty Beetles 

 had let it fall on his coat and that, a few 

 moments later, a similar Wasp had dropped 

 another on the ground. 



ipor the complete monograph, cf. Annales des sciences 

 naturelles: Series II., vol, xv. — Author's Note. 



