FAMILIES SPHEGID^E AND VESPIDjE. 195 



feed upon the larvae of the sirex. The tree was perfectly riddled with holes and burrows, 

 and was undoubtedly selected on account of its sheltered position. As happens with some 

 other species, the females sometimes perished from inability to withdraw their ovipositor ; 

 and this does not seem at all strange, for they frequently succeeded in introducing it into 

 the wood to the depth of three inches, slender as it is. 



Spliegidae. 



The collar is dilated laterally, and extends to the base of the wings. The legs are long 

 the posterior being more than twice as long as the head and thorax. The antennas are fili- 

 form or subsetaceous, long, and composed of elongated joints. The body is long, and the 

 abdomen is attached by a long peduncle. Mandibles elongate, curved, narrow, and notched 

 on the outside at the base : eyes entire : legs fossorial. 



These insects appear like wasps, except in their pedunculated abdomen : they are 

 exceedingly active, restless, and difficult to capture. 



Sphex pennsylvanica. ( Plate xxvi, fig. 9.) 



Color steel-blue and purplish : margins of the wings fading into brownish, scarcely 



observable. Head transverse, short : eyes prominent ; hindwings dilated behind. 



Abdomen greenish steel-blue, oval, acute, and attached to the thorax by a slender 



thread. Antennae brownish : thorax and head pubescent : tarsi black. 



Vespidae. 



Vespa fraterna. ( Plate xxvi, fig. 6.) 



Color brown. Surface without puncture and smooth. Antenna? paler on the under side. 



Wings smoke-brown, translucent. First ring of the abdomen marked with a yellow 



ring. Legs brown, except the joints, and a short stripe of lustrous upon the upper 



side of the femora : tarsi luteous. 



The wasp and hornet exhibit skill and patience in preparing their habitations : they 



are natural paper-makers, and fabricate an article that is impervious to water. 



The wasps form their habitation beneath stones, fixing it to the inferior surface. They 

 feed their young upon vegetable juices, and the softer parts of other insects which they 

 capture. They are fond of the juices of our domestic fruits, and seem to have a preference 

 for the expressed juice of the apple, as they are observed to abound about cider-mills and 

 in apple-yards. 



