some British Guiana Hymenoptera. 307 



nestiiiii-places for this species. It appears to prefer 

 domestic habitations for its nesting-places. The short 

 wooden bridges which span the navigation trenches on 

 sugar estates are always thickly infested beneath with the 

 nests of these insects, and passing beneath such bridges 

 in a small boat is always an exciting and quite occasionally 

 a painful experience. In dwelling-houses they are always 

 a source of danger, especially when children are about. 

 The local name is " marabunta." Destroying marabunta 

 nests with a wad of dried palm leaves attached to a long 

 pole soaked in kerosene and ignited is an interesting 

 operation for an onlooker at a respectful distance. At 

 times these wasps will remain quite motionless in an alert 

 position on their nests for hours together, as though on 

 guard. From the economic standpoint they are exceed- 

 ingly useful, for they may often be seen hunting for and 

 consuming the larvae of various agricultural pests, espe- 

 cially the Rice Worm {Laphygma frugiperda, S. & A.). 

 The nests are irregular in structure and not strongly made, 

 for pieces are frequently falling from the nest. The flight 

 of this insect is somewhat clumsy. 



P. crinitus, Felton. An uncommon species on the coast 

 lands. 



Genus Polybia, Lep. 



P. fulvofasciata , de G. (= jjJithisica, F.). A common 

 species on the coast lands; the nests are frequently found 

 attached to the under surfaces of leaves, especially those 

 of the mango tree. Large nests are seldom encountered. 



P. occidentalis, Oliv. An exceedingly common species 

 throughout the coast lands, and at times encountered in 

 the interior. The nests are found attached to the under 

 surfaces of many species of palms. The nests are never 

 large, more or less circular in shape, and constructed of 

 exceedingly light and fragile material. This small wasp 

 is not unduly pugnacious, and seldom attacks unless the 

 nest is damaged; it is thus frequently encountered when 

 felling the branches of young coconut palms. The sting 

 has no great lasting effects, but the first shock is exceed- 

 ingly painful. On one occasion a gardener who was 

 trimming a hedge of Barbados Cherry {Malphigia glabra) 

 brought into the laboratory a good-sized nest of this 

 species which he had very carefully removed with some 

 of the wasps in situ on the outside of the nest. The local 



