January i6, 1902] 



JVA TURE 



251 



various fossorial Hymenoptera of the genera Cerceris, 

 Sphex, Ammophila and Bembex, and the Mason Bees of 

 the genus Chalicodoma ; and the volume is varied by 

 autobiographical reminiscences, and an account of an 

 ascent of Mont \'entoux. It is interesting to learn that 

 M. Fabre's enthusiasm for entomological investigation 

 was excited by his accidentally meeting with a pamphlet 

 of Leon Dufour's on the habits of Cerceris as long ago 

 as 1843. These observations, as the present volume 

 shows, M. Fabre continued and completed with great 

 success. 



As regards the Sacred Beetle, M. Fabre considers that 

 he has quite disproved the old idea that the balls of dung 

 rolled by the beetle ever contain eggs ; they are simply 

 stores of food, and the real nest prepared for the egg is 

 constructed underground later in the year. 



M. Fabre's observations on the limitations of instinct in 

 Hymenoptera are most curious and interesting, but are 

 too long to be discussed here in detail ; for these the 



bush near the burrows, it waits until chance brings 

 some Sphex returning home within reach, thus achieving 

 a double capture, catching together Sphex and prey. Its 

 patience is long tried ; the Sphex is suspicious and on 

 her guard, but from lime to time a rash one lets herself 

 be caught. By a sudden rustle of half-spread wings, as 

 by a convulsive movement, the Mantis terrifies the ap- 

 proaching Sphex, which hesitates for a moment, and then 

 with the suddenness of a spring the toothed forearm folds 

 back on an arm also toothed, and the insect is seized 

 between the blades of the double saw, as though the jaws 

 of a wolf-trap were closing on the beast as it takes the 

 bait. Then, without unclosing the cruel machine, the 

 Mantis gnaws little mouthfuls of its victim. Such are the 

 ecstasies, the prayers, and the mystic meditations of the 

 Presto Dieou." 



We hope the work will be completed by the translation 

 of the remaining volumes of the series. At the same 

 time, we regret to note that a few glaring technical errors 



book itself must be consulted. Suffice it to say, how- 

 ever, that they throw no light on the real nature of instinct, 

 which remains more mysterious than ever ; but only 

 illustrate its manner of working. 



The translation is very readable, sufficiently so to 

 arrest the attention of a mere child who feels an interest 

 in insects, notwithstanding that it sometimes deals with 

 problems that no man living can yet answer. As an 

 instance of the style of the book we will quote a portion 

 of M. Fabre's account of the Praying Mantis : — 



" A word more of the ' Praying Mantis,' the Prego 

 Dieou, as it is called in Provence, i.e. the Pray-to-God. 

 And indeed its long pale green wings, like ample veils, 

 its head upraised to heaven, its arms folded and crossed 

 on its breast, give it a false resemblance to a nun in 

 ecstatic devotion. All the same, it is a ferocious creature, 

 bent on carnage. Although not especially favourite 

 hunting-grounds, the workshops of various burrowing 

 Hymenoptera are often visited by it. Posted on some 



NO. 1 68 I, VOL. 65] 



y, the Praying Mantis. 



in the translation have escaped notice. " Pattes " is 

 usually translated " feet," but in almost every case " legs " 

 would be the proper rendering. But what are we to 

 think of such a passage as this, on p. 36, where the word 

 "doigt" of the original, used for the five-jointed tarsus, 

 is translated " claw " .' " One claw to each foot is the 

 rule, and this claw, at least in the case of the superior 

 Coleoptera, especially the scavenger beetles, contains five 

 joints." Again, in chapter ix., it is clear that the trans- 

 lator does not understand the real meaning of the terms 

 " grillon," '• criquet " and " acridien," and has sadly mixed 

 them up, reversing " grasshoppers " and " crickets " in 

 more than one passage. But when we object to 

 " Buprestkis iniains and Buprestis Jlavoinacu/ata" 

 beneath the plate opposite p. 46, we have exhausted our 

 fault-finding, and warmly recommend the book to the 

 attention of all who are interested in the habits of insects, 

 and the many curious problems which they offer for our 

 investigation. 



