HYMEXOPTEEA-ACULEATA. 373 



separate burrows in close proximity. According to her 

 species, the female wasp excavates a little tunnel either 

 in sand, mud, dead wood or other sriitable material ; there 

 she deposits her. egg, and then stores up as sustenance for 

 the future grub, which she herself will never live to see, 

 such animal food as Lepidopterous larvae, Diptera, 

 Coleoptera, other Hymenoptera, Hemiptera and Arach- 

 nids. These products of the chase are placed in the 

 burrows alive, but reduced to a state of paralyzis by the 

 poison of the captor's sting ; they apparently die about 

 the time the egg hatches and the young larva requires 

 food. It is probable that some few species, such as those 

 belonging to the Mutillidce, are inquiline upon other 

 insects, and thus form exceptions to the above general rule 

 of life among the Fossores. 



The Hymenopterous Chrysididce are parasitic upon the 

 larvae of some of the Fossores, e.g., Hedychrum upon 

 Mimesa, Hedychrum and Chrysis upon Astata, and the 

 ubiquitous C. ignita upon other genera. Certain Diptera 

 are also said to have been bred from their nest cells. 



Mutillidce. 



Solitary Ants, with winged males and apterous females. 

 Their habits are but little known ; they are very probably 

 inquiline upon the insects whose nests they have been 

 observed to frequent. 



Mutilla europcea has been found in the nests of the 

 genus Bombus, and Myrmosa melanocephala with Halictus, 

 Megachile and Vespa. 

 Myrmosa, Latr. 

 M. melanocephala, Fab. — Only recorded so far from 

 Delamere, B.C., though it is not infrequent in 

 North Wales about burrows of Halictus rubi- 

 cundus and other Aculeates. 



