344 THE WONDER OF LIFE 



deserted burrow of a field-mouse. In the middle of a 

 ball of grass, leaves and the like, some nectar and pollen 

 are collected, and on this floor a cell or cradle of brown 

 wax is built. Some eggs are laid in it and a lid is put on. 

 The queen broods over this cradle, till in four days or so the 

 grubs emerge. These soon use up the food in the cradle 

 and more has to be put in through a hole in the hd. More- 

 over, the cradle has to be enlarged, tiU it is as big as a 

 walnut. In about a week after hatching, the grubs pass 

 into a quiescent pupa-state within papery cocoons, upright 

 within the cradle. The mother bites the waxen walls 

 away and broods again over the cocoons. In about twelve 

 days worker-bees emerge, who assist the queen, building 

 new cradles, collecting food, and nursing a new generation. 

 Besides the workers there are drones or males, who leave 

 the nest as soon as they can fly and fend for themselves 

 outside. Then there are young queens, who fly of5: by and 

 by on what is called their nuptial flight, in which they 

 are joined by the drones. They are the mothers of 

 another year. 



As a single instance of more elaborate construction we 

 have inserted a figure, from Janet, of the paper nest 

 of a wasp {Vespa media). The nest in this case was 

 hung to a leaf, but to begin with to a twig seen in the 

 centre. The door is to the left side below. The walls are 

 made of numerous (eighteen) overlapping envelopes of 

 the chewed wood which forms the wasp-paper. About 

 ten of these have been torn away below to make room for 

 the combs. The first comb (2) was about four inches in 

 diameter, and showed five concentric areas of cells, some 

 the cradle of one young wasp, others used twice, mostly 

 for workers, but partly for males. An axial support (3) leads 



