154 OUR BACKDOOR NEIGHBORS 



bottom of each cell is opposite a part of the 

 bottom of three other cells. The wasps build 

 their combs horizontally with the open end 

 downward and no opposite cell. While the 

 gold-banded paper-maker builds only a single 

 comb and makes it large or small according to 

 whether the mother wasp be vigorous and pro- 

 lific, there are other species that build several 

 combs, one above another and inclose them 

 all in a paper case. As the days went by the 

 Naturalist came to cultivate a close acquaint- 

 ance with the little yellow-banded wasp and 

 her offspring. He caught mosquitos and fed 

 to the larvae almost daily. At times the mother 

 would take them away and eat them herself, 

 at other times she would feed them to the 

 youngsters, but more often she would resent 

 the interference with her family affairs and 

 toss the dead mosquito contemptuously away. 

 At times, when she became nervous or angry, 

 she would cut the tops of some of the paper 

 cells. Snip, snip, she would cut away, using 

 her mandibles just like a pair of scissors. 

 Although the Naturalist watched closely, he 

 never saw her feed the paper to her young but 

 the one time already mentioned. When the 

 Naturalist found small caterpillars she would 



