294 WASPS AND THEIR WAYS 



one large insect in a burrow. Many others 

 store a number of smaller insects, for the 

 nourishment of each larva. A few build 

 little pockets or rooms from the side of 

 the main burrow, thus constructing a 

 house of several rooms, instead of making 

 a separate burrow for each tgg laid. 



Each species has its favourite insect, 

 some catching spiders, some caterpillars, 

 some beetles, some bugs, some aphides, 

 and so on. 



Some species prefer bees, catching two 

 dozen or more wild bees to store one nest ; 

 and there are wasps in the world that 

 prefer honey-bees to anything else, these 

 sometimes causing havoc among the 

 hives. 



While some wasps sting their prey to 

 paralysis, others injure the captured insects 

 very little, and still others sting them to 

 death. Some, again, do not sting the in- 

 sect at all, but bite it until it is quiet, often 

 squeezing the neck with the mandibles 



