Solitary Bees and Wasps 



strong, and with them they bite at the earth till they have 

 removed a pellet. Then they come to the surface with 

 their burden in their mouths and deposit it a short 

 distance away from the entrance to their burrow. All 

 the time they are at work they keep up a loud buzzing, 

 apparently with the object of scaring away strangers. 

 After the completion of her burrowing operations the 

 female covers the door of her nest with a small pebble, 

 and over this, in turn, she scrapes dry earth, tamping it 

 down, marvellous to relate, with a small stone held in her 

 powerful jaws. Over all she often places a few pieces of 

 dried grass. The solicitude of the mother wasp for the 

 effectual concealment of her burrow is one of the most 

 remarkable traits of these wonderful insects. Sometimes 

 the wasp will return again and again to the site of her 

 home, to assure herself that all is well. On these visits 

 she frequently places other objects over the burrow to 

 make assurance doubly sure. 



Having made certain that she has done all that is 

 possible to hide her nest, the wasp hunts about for insect 

 prey. Some sand-wasps prefer caterpillars and others 

 spiders. Having found a suitable insect for her purpose, 

 she stings it in such a manner that, although it is for ever 

 incapable of movement, it does not actually die, and there 

 is reason in her action. Bearing her burden with unerring 

 accuracy to her burrow, she removes the earth and stones 

 from its mouth and enters, dragging her paralysed prey 

 after her. The end of the burrow is formed into a 

 chamber. Here she leaves her living burden, deposits an 

 egg upon it and flies away in search of further provision 

 for her larder, after carefully closing and concealing the 

 entrance to her home. More provender is collected and 

 stored in the same way and an egg deposited upon each 

 individual, then the life work of the mother wasp is com- 

 pleted. Her last act is to conceal the entrance to her 

 burrow, and this she does with scrupulous care, for never- 

 more will she be able to tend it. Satisfied with her efforts, 



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