INTRODUCTION. 
pigeon's egg, of a buff colour, which, with his 
legs, were covered with mort filky rrdir ; on the 
top of the abdomen was a round red fpot or ocelle 
encircled with black. After I had recovered from 
the furprife, obferving that the wary hunter had re- 
tired under cover, I drew near again, and prefently 
difcovered that I had furprifed him on predatory at- 
tempts againfi: the infect tribes. I was therefore de- 
termined to watch his proceedings. I foon noticed 
that the object of his wimes was a large fat bomble 
bee (apis bombylicus), that was vifiting the flowers, 
and piercing their nectariferous tubes : this cunning 
intrepid hunter conducted his fubtil approaches with 
the circumfpection and perfeverance of a Sirninole 
when hunting a deer, advancing with flow fteps 
obliquely, or under cover of denfe foliage, and be- 
hind the limbs, and when the bee was engaged in 
probing a flower, he would leap nearer, and then 
inftantly retire out of fight, under a leaf or behind 
a branch, at the fame time keeping a flu. rp eye upon 
me. When he had now gotten within two feet of 
his prey, and the bee was intent on Tipping the deli- 
cious nectar from a flower, with his back next the 
fpider, he inftantly fprang upon him, and grafped 
him over the back and ihoulder, when for fome 
moments they both difappeared. I expected the 
bee had carried off his enemy, but to my furprife, 
they both together rebounded back again, fufpended 
at the extremity of a ftrong elaftic thread or web, 
which the fpider had artfully let fall, or fixed on the 
twig, the inflant he leaped from it : the rapidity of 
the bee's wings, endeavouring to extricate himfelf, 
made them both together appear as a moving va- 
pour, until the bee became fatigued by whirling 
round, hrit one way and then back Nagain : at 
length, in about a quarter of an hour, the bee quite 
cxhaufted by hrs ftruggles 2 and the repeated wounds 
