( 2280 ) 
the Eggs of Spiders, that hath occafioned the conjedure. 
One of the green CaterpillarSjCommou in the Heaths in the 
Northjwentfo far on to her natural change^that (lie made her 
felf up into a great brown Theca^ almoft of the fliape of a bot- 
tle, which was filled with a fwarm of Icbneumones. And I 
have obferved in one or two other forts, that from the very 
Amelia ic-felf hath corae an Ichneumon ^ which is very odd^that 
the Caterpillar, flung and imprargnared by the Ichneumons 
fhould be yet fo far unhurt, and uiiconcernedj as to make her 
{qM 2itheca^2i.nA to be turned into an Amelia. 
^ 1 have often feen a great Ichneumon (irzggjug a Caterpillar 
ill the high- way. This year Mr JVray^ in company with ano- 
ther ingenious neighbour, obferved one haling a large green 
caterpillar much bigger than her felf, which after fhe had 
drawn the length of a pearch, flie laid down, and then takes 
out alictlepelletof Earth, with which fhe had flopped the 
mouth of a fmall hole like a worm-hole ^ then fhe goes down 
into it, and flaying a very little comes up again, and draws the 
er^^TiS down with her into the hole, and there leaves her 5 and 
afterwards not only flops but fills up the Hole , fomecimes 
carrying in little clods, and fometimes fcraping dufl with her ^ 
feer, and throwingit backwards into the hole, going down 
afterjher felf", to ramit clofe. Once or twice fhe flew up into . 
a Pine-tree, which grew jufl over her hole, perhaps to fetch 
Cement; When the hole was full and even with thefuperfi* " 
cies of the ground about itj fhe draws two Pine* tree- leaves 
and lays them near the mouth of the hole^and flyes away. Not 
taking notice that fhe came any more in three or four days, 
we digged for the Caterpillar, and found it pretty deep. I put I 
it into abo-x, expediog it would h^iVQ produced an I chnet/mon, \\ 
bat it dried away and nothing came of it* We lately obfer^ 
ved a fort of Ichneumons^or rather ve/^te, which prey upon feve? 
ral forts of fiyes ; when they fiy with them, they hold them ' ' 
the heads, and carry them under their bellies^ Thefe make 
holes a great depth in the ground ; in which they lay their | 
young, and feed them with the flies they carclr^creeping back- ' 
wards into the ground, and drawing the flies after them, 
ifafpeft they may at firft lay their Eggs in the very body ofa 
f 
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