362 HOSfES WITHOUT ILUfDS. 



" Well, having again, as aljove stated, removed tlie covering 

 from this nest, I took away the lower comb and reduced the 

 nest somewhat in size, placing them in a box thirteen inches in 

 length, and arranged in such a way that the workers should 

 necessarily produce a vase, or rather a goblet-shaped nest. This 

 they did, and a splendid object it is, being, as before, the joint 

 work of two species of wasps, the one, V. vulgaris, using, as 

 it invariably does, decayed wood (such as is commonly called 

 touchwood), and the other, V. germanica, using sound wood, or 

 sound vegetable fibre of some kind, in the fabrication of its 

 paper. Thus they gave to the coverings of both these nests an 

 extraordinary beauty, from the variety and charming distribu- 

 tion of the colours with which they were enriched. 



As none of the workers from the nest of V. vulgaris were ever 

 found to attach themselves to the nest of V. germanica, which was 

 situated in a similar corner of the window below, 1 conclude 

 tliat they made no mistake as to the corner of the window in 

 which their nest was situated, but miscalculated the height of 

 the window. As they entered the strange nest with food and 

 building material, they were not molested, but allowed to join 

 peaceably in the work of the nest. 



" "Widely different would have been the case had they entered it 

 for the purpose of pillage ; for, though wasps will not interfere 

 with strange individuals of their own species, even when they 

 come with thievish intentions, they instantly seize all indi- 

 viduals of a different species if their intentions appear sus- 

 picious. 



" I have since met with another instance of the kind. 



" Two nests were situated almost close together, in a drain 

 at Cokethorpe Park, one belonging to V. vulgaris and the other 

 having been originally the proj)erty of V. germanica. It would, 

 ho^^■cver, appear tliat at an early period in the season, workers 

 i'rom the former nest had attached themselves to the latter, their 

 numbers increasiug as the season advanced. Judging from the 

 appearance of the nest, and from the amount of work done by 

 each species, it was easy to see that at the end of August, when 

 J dug it out, the number of individuals of each species was 

 almost ec|nal. There is no possibility of mistaking the work of 

 une ypecies for tliat of the other, and tlie di&thictioii is apparent 

 at a iilaiiL'C. 



