The Mason-Wasps 



dead, for it shrivels, dries up and goes 

 black, while the larvae subjected to the tho- 

 racic operation with a view to being used 

 for provisions remain full and fresh-col- 

 oured for weeks and months. Did the 

 grub die of its stings in the abdomen? No, 

 for the others, stung in the thorax, do not 

 die. It is the Odynerus' cruel tooth and 

 not the sting that killed it. With the tip 

 of the abdomen crushed under the man- 

 dibles and the intestinal capsule pulled out 

 by the roots, life has ceased to be possible. 



218 



