COMMON WASPS 103 



In the open country, late in the year when fruit is scarce, 

 the grubs are mostly fed upon minced Fly; but in my cages 

 everything is refused but honey. Both nurses and nurs- 

 lings seem to thrive on this diet, and if any intruder ventures 

 too near to the combs he is doomed. Wasps, it appears, 

 are far from hospitable. Even the Polistes, an insect who 

 is absolutely like a Wasp in shape and colour, is at once 

 recognised and mobbed if she approaches the honey the 

 Wasps are sipping. Her appearance takes nobody in for a 

 moment, and unless she hastily retires she will meet with a 

 violent death. No, it is not a good thing to enter a Wasps' 

 nest, even when the stranger wears the same uniform, pursues 

 the same industry, and is almost a member of the same 

 corporation. 



Again and again I have seen the savage reception given 

 to strangers. If the stranger be of sufficient importance he 

 is stabbed, and his body is dragged from the nest and flung 

 into the refuse-heap below. But the poisoned dagger seems 

 to be reserved for great occasions. If I throw the grub of 

 a Saw-fly among the Wasps they show great surprise at the 

 black-and-green dragon ; they snap at it boldly, and wound 

 it, but without stinging it. They try to haul it away. The 

 dragon resists, anchoring itself to the comb by its hooks, 

 holding on now by its fore-legs and now by its hind-legs. At 

 last the grub, however, weakened by its wounds, is torn from 

 the comb and dragged bleeding to the refuse-pit. It has 

 taken a couple of hours to dislodge it. 



Supposing, on the other hand, I throw on to the combs 

 a certain imposing grub that lives under the bark of cherry- 

 trees, five or six Wasps will at once prick it with their stings. 

 In a couple of minutes it is dead. But the huge dead body 

 is much too heavy to be carried out of the nest. So the Wasps, 

 finding they cannot move the grub, eat it where it lies, or 

 at least reduce its weight till they can drag the remains 

 outside the walls. 



