144 FIELD ZOOLOGY. 



to the output of work of the whole community? This is 

 much like a similar question which might be put' concerning 

 our own effectiveness in the world. No one can do his best 

 for others if he keeps in a corner by himself and refuses to 

 help right cheerfully in the work of the big, busy world. 



Wasps are more difficult to study on account of their 

 irritability and their effective stings. Still, if you can 

 find a small nest of a paper wasp, watch till you are sure 

 that the wasp mother is not at home ; then detach it from 

 its fastenings and put it into a box which has previously 

 had a square of wire netting set into the lid. If the lid 

 is pasteboard, cut out a piece and sew in the netting; if 

 the lid is wooden, saw out a piece and tack on the netting. 

 This will enable you to see what is going on in the nest. 

 Until some adults have emerged, you may examine the 

 nest freely. You may find some of the cells open; this 

 means that the eggs formerly in those cells have developed 

 into adults which have gnawed their way out into the 

 outer world. If there are some cells still smoothly capped, 

 play wasp on one of them by carefully cutting the cap 

 around its edge, leaving a small strip for a hinge. Raise 

 this lid and look inside. If there is an egg, notice what 

 food is left beside it. If it is a larva, notice its appearance 

 and how it eats. Does the paper wasp mother go back 

 repeatedly to feed her young larva ? If it is a pupa, lift it 

 out carefully and examine it on all sides to see how far the 

 adult organs are developed. By watching the place where 

 the nest hung you may be able to discover and watch the 

 behavior of the wasp mother when she comes back and 

 finds her nest gone, and what she does after the discovery. 



Any galls found on weeds, bushes, or trees are 

 interesting for study. There are many insects that form 

 galls: mites, moths, gnats, and some small beetles, as well 



