HORNET. 261 



HORNET.* 



A FRIEND of mine gave me, some time back, a 

 small nest, supposed to be that of the hornet in an 

 incipient stage, which was found suspended, in the 

 month of June, from the top of the inside of an 

 empty beehive, at Mickleham in Surrey. In shape 

 it is very similar to that of the Vespa holsatica last 

 described, but much smaller, and very differently 

 constructed. Its size is about that of a large 

 orange. The outer casing consists but of a single 

 layer, which is thin and porous, the colour brown, 

 yellowish-brown towards the top, and similar to 

 that of decayed wood. This casing, when closely 

 examined, is found to be made up, not of filaments, 

 but of minute abraded chips and fragments of rot- 

 ten wood, opake, and apparently very little altered 

 by any kneading process. There are not more than 

 five-and-forty cells in all, forming a single layer at 

 the upper part of the nest, the walls of which ex- 

 tend far below it, as if to allow of other layers 

 being added. These cells are very much larger than 

 those of the tree-wasp, but not so firm in texture. 

 When the nest came into my hands, they were all 

 empty. This appears to have been the first commence- 

 ment of a nest by the mother-queen alone, previ- 

 ously to having any workers to assist her in the 

 undertaking. 



* Vespa crabro, Linn. 



