134 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



fell backwards over some impediment or other, but the pellet 

 in most cases was held firmly, although sometimes the beetle 

 and pellet went tumbling over each other. If the beetle 

 chanced to lose its burden it seldom searched for it again, 

 but went off on the look out for another. Having accom- 

 plished the task of pulling some three or four pellets to the 

 base of the mound around the tunnel, the next thing was to 

 find the tunnel itself, which seemed to perplex the poor 

 insect very much, for with the labour of collecting these 

 pellets it apparently had lost the knowledge of the exact 

 position of the tunnel, but after a longer or shorter search it 

 was sure to find the desired aperture, when, thrusting its head 

 and thorax therein, it would remain motionless for a few 

 seconds, as if making sure that all things were right. It then 

 proceeded to drag the pellets, one by one, up the side of the 

 mound, and almost invariably the beetle fell backwards into 

 the mouth of the tunnel with its load, which, being released, 

 rolled instantly down the oblique gallery: this having been 

 accomplished, the beetle would return to the mouth of its 

 subterranean nursery and remain very quiet, as if resting 

 from the fatigue of its previous exertions, before entering 

 upon the labour of pulling up another pellet. I thus saw the 

 creature dispose of eight or nine of these pellets, and at last 

 left it resting in the mouth of its retreat; but whether the 

 work of provision had thus been completed, or but partly 

 fulfilled, I did not learn, but I believe T saw the commence- 

 ment of the work, for when I first observed the tunnel I saw 

 that just below its surface two galleries were excavated 

 opposite each other and in divergent directions, but one of 

 them was very shallow, — not more than an inch and a half 

 deep, — as I could see its end ; possibly this was commenced 

 before the larger and deeper one, but some obstacle prevented 

 its completion, and so the second had to be bored. I inspected 

 several other borings, but each had only a single shaft, as it 

 were ; and one thing I wish to notice, with regard to the one 

 upon which my chief observations are founded, namely, that 

 the beetle seemed to be actuated by a sort of blind instinct 

 throughout its proceedings, as the first three or four pellets in 

 the tunnel rolled into the shallow chamber, which they almost 

 filled, and yet the beetle never took the least notice of them 

 there, but always entered the deeper burrow for a short 



