The Common Wasp 



whereas the old workers perish suddenly. 

 In the same way, the males, so long as their 

 part is not played out, resist the cold fairly 

 well. My cage contains a few, always 

 nimble and alert. I see them making ad- 

 vances to their companions, without greatly 

 insisting. They are repulsed with a friendly 

 push of the leg. The time is past for the 

 raptures of the pairing. Those lingerers 

 have let the right moment slip; they will die 

 useless. 



The females whose end is near are easily 

 distinguished from the others by the disorder 

 of their appearance. Their backs are dusty. 

 Those who are hale and hearty, once they 

 have taken their meal on the brim of the 

 saucer of honey, settle in the sun and dust 

 themselves without ceasing. There is an in- 

 cessant brushing of the wings and abdomen, 

 with gentle, sensitive extensions of the hind- 

 legs; the fore-legs repeatedly stroke the head 

 and the thorax. Thus the black-and-yellow 

 costume is kept perfectly glossy. Those 

 who are ailing, careless of cleanliness, stand 

 motionless in the sun or wander languidly 

 about. They no longer brush their clothes. 



This indifference to dress is a bad sign. 

 Two or three days later, in fact, the dusty 

 female leaves the nest for the last time and 

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