The Hunting Wasps 



and so independent in their action that pa- 

 ralysis of one is not necessarily followed by 

 paralysis of the others? These questions 

 will be answered by the story of a Cricket- 

 huntress, the Yellow-winged Sphex (Sphex 

 flavipennis) . 



It is at the end of July that the Yellow- 

 winged Sphex tears the cocoon that has pro- 

 tected her until then and flies out of her sub- 

 terranean cradle. During the whole of 

 August, she is frequently seen flitting, in 

 search of some drop of honey, around the 

 spiked heads of the field eryngo, the common- 

 est of the hardy plants that brave the heat of 

 the dog-days in this month. But this careless 

 life does not last long, for by the beginning of 

 September the Sphex is at her arduous task 

 as a sapper and huntress. She generally se- 

 lects some small plateau, on the high banks 

 by the side of the roads, wherein to establish 

 her home, provided that she find two indis- 

 pensable things there: a sandy soil, easy to 

 dig; and sunshine. No other precaution is 

 taken to protect the dwelling against the au- 

 tumn rains or winter frosts. A horizontal 

 site, unprotected, lashed by the rain and the 

 winds, suits her perfectly, on condition, how- 

 ever, that it is exposed to the sun. And, 

 6* 



