i6 
NATURAL HISTORY NOTES AND QUERIES. 
Solitary Wasps (p. 255). — I have seen many nests of solitary wasps, but 
those that I have noticed have all been built externally , on walls, &c. I look 
upon these insects as marvellous in their instinct and ingenuity in building 
operations. 
Last summer, when some iron hurdles were being removed for rick-building 
purposes, I noticed what at first sight appeared to be a plaster of clay thrown 
against the “ head,” or part into which the bars are inserted, but on closer 
examination I could see it was one of these nests. The hurdle was placed 
inside a shed for protection of the nest, and also for future observations. Some 
weeks ago I saw a blue-tit fly out several times, and on examination I found his 
keen eye had detected the nest, which nine hundred and ninety-nine out of a 
thousand human beings would not have noticed, and had opened the cells and 
taken out the larvue, disclosing about fifteen cells underneath the clod of clay, or 
rather, the mud-built nest. 
A stwood Bank , Redditch . J . H 1 A m . 
Hornets Gnawing Twigs, &C.— This morning (October 4, 1897) I 
observed a hornet sitting on the stem of a small ash-bush. Upon looking more 
closely I saw that she was busily stripping off the bark with her mandibles, and 
when she flew away there was a fair-sized surface freshly bared. This, however, 
was but part of a large, irregular scar which must have been made in the same 
way, since the edges of the gnawed bark presented everywhere the same appear- 
ance, that is to say, rough, with slender white fibres hanging like threads. On 
measuring the length of the scar, which in one place extended right round the 
stem, I found it to be just over 2-J inches. 
Next day I paid two visits to the ash-bush and each time found either the 
same or another hornet nibbling at the latest gnawed edge of the scar. I watched 
her the first time for nearly half-an-hour before she flew away. She laboured 
much, as could be seen from the attitudes she assumed. Bringing my face quite 
close I could distinctly hear the little click made by the powerful mandibles as 
they met together in the process of shredding the bark. When the rough work 
was done, however, these were no longer employed, but with the rest of the 
wonderful apparatus forming the mouth, she went through the process of licking, 
sucking, and absorbing into her system the juices exuding from the bruised bark. 
Whilst thus engaged she would allow no intruder on her feeding-ground. Once 
a fly and twice some small hymenopterous insect came near her, and each time 
she made an angry run at them, as a dog might have done, snapping with her 
mandibles. 
During the rest of the month I continued to visit the place every few days, 
finding sometimes one and sometimes two hornets feeding there— never more. 
On the 31st two hornets remained all night on the stem, where I found them next 
morning numbed and motionless, their antennae sunk on their fore-feet and 
covered all over with dew-drops. They were not then at the scar, but later they 
crawled down to it as if to feed, but seemed unable to though the sun was now 
warm. On November 3 one of these two was still clinging amidst some withered 
leaves close by, and seemed near her end. I took her home and placed her 
under a bell-glass in my study (no fire), where she remained during the morning, 
and in the afternoon I brought her into the dining-room where there was a good 
fire and the temperature high. Here she became quite revivified, ate greedily of 
some honey which I set before her, and afterwards cleaned herself with great 
thoroughness. She then buzzed up the sides of the bell-glass and was generally 
lively and active till I put her in my study again for the night. And yet some- 
thing of decrepitude seemed to mingle with all this activity. Next day, finding 
her crawling painfully about smeared all over with honey, I washed her, cleaned 
her cage, and brought her into the warm dining-room again. The heat again 
affected her, and she seemed to struggle to live, sprawling out with her legs, 
raising herself, straining convulsively, and then tumbling over on her back. I 
gave her a little honey on the point of my forceps, which she tried to eat, and 
did, 1 think, swallow a little of it. Then several times she stretched open her 
