NOTES ON HYMENOPTERA. 67 



have met with the parasite shortly after Germar's discovery. 

 The Rev. F. W. Hope found it plentifully, not only in the 

 nest of Vespa vulgaris hut also in that of V. rufa. Tlie 

 fiist notice that I can trace of the true nature of its parasitism 

 is that of Mr. Denison, who says that it "devours the grub 

 of the wasp entirely." He does not enter into particulars of 

 the observations made which warranted him in making this 

 statement, but it is just to assume that he did make such, 

 and this view is, I think, confirmed by the observation of 

 Mr. Bigg, who records the discovery, and who states that 

 Mr. Denison found the parasite in several instances, and 

 observed it in all the stages of its growth. This was some 

 time previous to the year 1835. 



Nothing further respecting the habits of Rliipiphorus is 

 recorded until 1865, when the late Mr. Stone published his 

 observations in the twenty-third volume of the " Zoologist." 

 He there records the fact of finding in a nest of Vespa 

 vulgains " several pup^e of the parasite and numbers of the 

 perfect insect, males and females, but could not detect the 

 piesence of a larva." Three days later he was more fortu- 

 nate, for on taking a nest of the wasp, and proceeding to 

 open the closed-up cells, he found " a larva of the parasite 

 firmly attached to the full-grown larva of the wasp, the 

 mouth of the former buried in the body of the latter just 

 below the head." The larva, he tells us, was of minute size, 

 and appeared to have only very recently fastened upon its 

 victim ; but so rapid was its growth, that in the course of 

 the following forty-eight hours it attained its full size, hav- 

 ing consumed every particle of its prey with the exception of 

 the skin and mandibles. Mr. Stone tells us that from subse- 

 quent observations he was enabled to make — clearly imply- 

 ing that he observed more than one larva of the parasite 

 devouring its victim — that these parasitic larvae, when they 



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