GENERAL SUMMARY. 185 



V. holsatica, of Fab., is one of the synonyms for our own F. sylvestris, 

 Scop. ; our V. norvei/ica, Fab., is also the V. britannica, of Leach. 



At the beginning of December, Dr. Schoyeu kindly sent me the 

 results of some subsequent information received as to the unusual pre- 

 valence of Wasps in the past season, and the damage done by them, 

 especially to Cherries in the neighbourhood of Laurvik, a town about 

 sixty-five miles S. S. W. of Christiania, as follows : — " . . . I have 

 also a short communication to give you about the Wasps. As I told 

 you before they have not this year been unusually abundant here in 

 the neighbourhood of Christiania, but now I have been informed that 

 they have been so in the neighbourhood of the town Laurvik (more 

 southwards), where they have done considerable damage upon the 

 Morel trees, eating away all the fruits, and leaving only the stones. 

 Such damage has not been observed in the place since many years, but 

 the Wasps were this summer flying most plentifully in the trees." — 

 (W. M. S.) 



GENEEAL SUMMARY. 



The foregoing British observations show presence of all of our 

 seven kinds of Vespidge, commonly known as " Wasps " (excepting of 

 the rare V. arborea). Of these, the V. vulgaris, or Common Ground Wasp, 

 appears to have been the most observed, although both the other khids 

 of Ground Wasps, F. gennanica, and F. riifa, were present. Of the 

 Tree Wasps, the F. sylvestris, was noted by two entomological observers, 

 respectively, as not uncommon, and as fairly common, and a nest of 

 the F. norvegica was also reported. The F. crabro, the Hornet (a true 

 Wasp, although not popularly considered as such), was "plentiful" in 

 some localities, but only reported from a few. 



The Wasps' nests, besides being much more numerous than in 

 ordinary years, were noticed in some instances as being of greater than 

 the customary size, and more numerously tenanted. From contributors 

 who especially attended to the numbers of nests destroyed, or kindly 

 obtained information for me, I had notes of destruction of over one 

 hundred and eighty nests on somewhat less than six hundred acres of 

 land ; two hundred nests taken in one nursery garden ; an estimate of 

 about three hundred nests taken on three hundred acres ; and in one 

 instance, where a bonus of sixpence per nest was given, three hundred 

 and seventy-six nests were taken within half a mile of the kitchen 

 garden, which was the centre of operations, and later on payment was 

 made for ninety-four more, within the same area, or a little further 

 away, — four hundred and seventy in all. Other notes gave twenty 

 nests ploughed up in one field ; three dozen observed, or taken, in the 

 radius of a quarter of a mile ; twenty- three nests in ninety- six yards of 

 dry stone wall, or dyke, &c. Of Hornets, in one locality, nine nests were 



