SOCIAL WASPS AND HORNTAILS 77 



decapitation took place, and the head be thus impaled 

 after the fashion in which the authorities in this country 

 once upon a time delighted to treat the heads of political 

 offenders who had suffered death for their indiscretion, 

 the head may be more conveniently handled and placed 

 in any desired position for examination. 



Of our seven British species of Vespa, the hornet 

 stands by itself, both as regards size and colour, and 

 may be conveniently left till we have considered the 

 remaining six, which are more or less alike, and consist 

 of three that form their nests underground and three 

 that build in trees. The latter are F sylvestris, arborea, 

 and norvegica. The second of these we need not trouble 

 ourselves about, as it is a rare insect, and not at all 

 likely to be met with. Norvegica occurs principally in 

 the north of our island, being fairly common in Scotland ; 

 and sylvestris, while generally distributed, is yet not so 

 common as the ground builders. 



The latter are F vulgaris, the so-called "common 

 wasp " (not that it is always the commonest, though 

 often so), germanica, and rufa, and it is the two former 

 of these that are most likely to fly in at our open 

 windows and manifest a disposition to join us in our 

 meals. On one occasion a large number of females of 

 germtinica were found gregariously hibernating in an 

 upper room of a large buildingHhat was used for storing 

 furniture. Some were amongst some blankets used in 

 covering the furniture, and others were clinging to some 

 rough woodwork, into which, as with a consciousness 

 that their limbs would become benumbed and useless 

 during the winter, they had firmly dug their mandibles. 

 To give an idea of the proportionate distribution of these 

 species, I may mention that a friend of mine in the 



