M ELLIN US ARVENSIS. 113 



It is amusing to see four or five females lie in wait upon a 

 patch of cow-dung until some luckless fly settles on it ; when 

 this happens, a cunning and gradual approach is made — a sudden 

 attempt would not succeed : the fly is the insect of quickest flight, 

 therefore a degree of artifice is necessary ; this is managed 

 by running past the victim slowly, and apparently in an uncon- 

 cerned manner, until the poor fly is caught unawares and carried 

 off by the Mellinus to its burrow ; the first fly being deposited, 

 an egg is laid, the necessary number of flies are soon secured, 

 and her task is completed ; but sometimes she is interrupted 

 by rainy weather, and it is some days ere she can store up 

 the quantity required. A larva found feeding became full-fed 

 in ten days ; six flies were devoured, the heads, harder parts 

 of the thorax, portions of the abdomen, and the legs being left 

 untouched. The larva spins a tough, thin, brown silken cocoon, 

 passes the winter and spring in the larva state, changes to the 

 nymph on the approach of summer, and appears about the 

 beginning of autumn in the perfect state. 



1. Mellinus arvensis. 



M. niger ; abdomine fasciis quatuor (tertia interrupta) pedibus- 

 que flavis. 



Vespa arvensis, Linn. Faun. Suec. 418. 1678 ; Syst. Nat. i. 950. 12. 



Fabr. Syst. Ent. 368. 30 ; Mant. i. 291. 49. 



Fillers, Ent. iii. 269. 9. 



Christ. Hyrn. 234. 

 Vespa superbus, Harris, Expos. 227. 3. t. 37. f . 3 ? . 

 Crabro bipunctatus, Fabr. Mant. i. 296. 18. 



Oliv. Encycl. Meth. vi. 516. 20. 

 Crabro U-flavum, Panz. Faun. Germ. 17. 20. 

 Mellinus bipunctatus, Fabr. Ent. Syst. ii. 286. 4. 

 Mellinus arvensis, Fabr. Ent. Syst. ii. 287. 7 ; Syst. Piez. 299. 10. 



Latr. Hist. Nat. xiii. 319. 3 ; Nouv. Diet. 2nd ed. 20. 100. 



Dumeril, Diet, des Sc. Nat. 30. 2. 2. 



Van d. Lind. Obs. ii. 84. 1. 



Zett. Ins. Lapp. 440. 1. 



Shuck. Foss. Hym. 203. 1. 



St. Farg. Hym. iii. 91. 1. 



Dahlb. Hym. Europ. i. 226. 131. 



Wesm. Hyrn. Foss. Bely. 96. 1. 

 Sphex arvensis, Ratz. Forst. Ins. Bd. iii. 35. 



Female. Length 6-7 lines. — Black ; the head closely and finely 

 punctured, the cheeks with a thin short silvery- white pubes- 

 cence ; a narrow line at the inner orbit of the eyes, sometimes 

 an interrupted one at the base of the clypeus, the scape in front 



