274 The Hunting Wasps 



some other reason, the murderess kills her 

 victims outright. 



In view of this fact, that the prey is quite 

 dead at the moment when it is carried off, who 

 would not admire the logic of the Bembex' pro- 

 cedure ? How methodical and consistent every- 

 thing is in the actions of the cunning Wasp ! 

 As the provisions cannot keep beyond two or 

 three days without going bad, they must not be 

 stored entire in the first stages of an infancy 

 which will last at least a fortnight ; and the 

 hunting and distribution must necessarily be 

 done day by day, bit by bit, as the larva grows 

 up. The first ration, the one that receives the 

 egg, will last longer than the others ; the bud- 

 ding grub will take several days to eat its flesh. 

 It must therefore be small, otherwise the joint 

 would begin to putrefy before it was all finished. 

 This joint therefore will not be a bulky Gad-fly 

 or a corpulent Bombylius, but rather a tiny 

 Sphaerophoria, or something similar, making a 

 dainty meal for the larva which is still so deli- 

 cate. Later, getting bigger and bigger in time, 

 will come the larger joints of venison. 



The burrow must be kept shut during the 

 mother's absence, to save the larva from re- 

 grettable intrusions ; nevertheless the entrance 

 must be one that can be opened very frequently 

 and hurriedly, without much difficulty, when 



