WASPS, SOCIAL AND SOLITARY 



Bembex holes and then scrambling out again, until she 

 had crossed the field and had turned to one side, having 

 gone, since we first saw her, about fifteen feet. Here 

 she dropped the spider and began to skim over the 

 ground it could not be called running and yet it was 

 not flying until she found a circular hole in the 

 black earth, which looked as if it ran vertically down- 

 ward. At the time we thought that this was a nest that 

 she had made for herself, but we afterward concluded 

 that it had been excavated by some other creature, 

 that she had found it and determined to make use of 

 it, and that she was bringing her prey to the spot with 

 that end in view. Without entering she rushed back to 

 the spider, but after carrying it a few inches, dropped 

 it and ran to take another look at the nest. By this 

 time, however, she was too much excited to know what 

 she was about, and for five minutes she scurried oveF 

 the ground without finding it. During this time she 

 picked up the spider four times, carried it a little way, 

 and then dropped it. The last time she carried it to the 

 edge of the grass and stowed it there, this being her first 

 attempt at concealment. She now found the hole again 

 and brought the spider nearly to it, but by this time she 

 was perfectly beside herself. The spider was seized 

 again and again, only to be dropped the next second, 

 224 



