286 
TROPICAL NATURE 
in 
cutting ant in America will thus explain why these specially 
modified plants are so much more abundant there than in the 
Old World, where no ants with equally destructive habits 
appear to exist. 
Wasps and Bees 
These insects are excessively numerous in the tropics, and, 
from their large size, their brilliant colours, and their great 
activity, they are sure to attract attention. Handsomest of 
all, perhaps, are the Scoliadse, whose large and rather broad 
hairy bodies, often two inches long, are richly banded with 
yellow or orange. The Pompilidse comprise an immense 
number of large and handsome insects, with rich blue-black 
bodies and wings and exceedingly long legs. They may often 
be seen in the forests dragging along large spiders, beetles, or 
other insects they have captured. Some of the smaller 
species enter houses and build earthen cells, which they store 
with small green spiders rendered torpid by stinging, to feed 
the laryse. The Eumenidae are beautiful wasps with very 
long pedunculated bodies, which build papery cones covering 
a few cells in which the eggs are deposited. Among the bees 
the Xylocopas, or wood -boring bees, are remarkable. They 
resemble large humble-bees, but have broad, flat, shining 
bodies, either black or banded with blue ; and they often bore 
large cylindrical holes in the posts of houses. True honey- 
bees are chiefly remarkable in the East for their large semi- 
circular combs suspended from the branches of the loftiest 
trees without any covering. From these exposed nests large 
quantities of wax and honey are obtained, while the larvae 
afford a rich feast to the natives of Borneo, Timor, and other 
islands where bees abound. They are very pugnacious, and, 
when disturbed will follow the intruders for miles, stinging 
severely. 
Orthoptera and other Insects 
Next to the butterflies and ants, the insects that are most 
likely to attract the attention of the stranger in the tropics 
are the various forms of Mantidse and Phasmidse, some of 
which are remarkable for their strange attitudes and bright 
colours ; while others are among the most singular of known 
insects, owing to their resemblance to sticks and leaves. The 
