94 
Psyche 
[March-June 
in the first nest (H23), the cells in this nest appeared to be built 
not in series but from short, branching side burrows leading from 
a single tunnel. 
The nest at Bedford, Mass. (no. 2306), was evidently in an 
early stage of development when excavated. The entrance, 4 mm 
in diameter, led to several subterranean cavities of which one con- 
tained a cicindelid larva. Upon further digging, a single cell 
containing prey and a 3-mm-long larva was unearthed at a distance 
of 15 cm from the entrance (Fig. 5). The female was captured 
in another branch of the nest, 15 cm from the entrance. 
At Colonie, the depths of the seven cells in the first nest (H23) 
ranged from 22 to 44 (mean 32) cm beneath the surface, whereas 
those of the eight cells in the second nest (H23K) ranged from 21 
to 24 (mean 22.5) cm. The relative uniformity in the latter set of 
figures is related to the fact that the nest was compact and the cells 
were constructed close to the edge of the mound, whereas in the 
first nest the cells were distributed from the edge of the mound to 
the top. There was no correlation between the depth of the cell 
or its distance from the entrance and the stage of the developing 
wasp. For example, in nest H23 the shallower cells nearer the 
entrance contained larvae and the deeper cells farther from the 
entrance held eggs. In nest H23K, on the other hand, the shallower 
cells nearer the entrance contained small larvae but the deeper cells 
farther from the entrance, mature larvae inside cocoons. The ovoidal 
cells were oriented either horizontally or sloped upward or down- 
ward in the soil at a 15-25 0 angle. Five such cells at Colonie 
averaged 6 (4-8) X 11 (10-12) mm. One cell at Bedford was 
5-mm-wide. 
One of the females (H23K) had been observed taking in prey 
nine days before we excavated her nest, indicating that she took an 
average of more than one day to complete a single cell. This may 
have been due to poor weather conditions. However, even during 
optimal weather conditions, our data on the provisioning times sug- 
gest that a female constructs and completes not more than two cells 
per day. Such a wasp probably remains with the same nest for 
several weeks, enlarging it and continuously adding new cells. Thus, 
a female of B. distinctus might renovate and use only one or a few 
nests during her lifetime in the northeastern United States. Cazier 
and Mortenson (1965) noted that the female they observed in 
Arizona interrupted her rather continuous provisioning activities a 
total of four times in one day and spent exceedingly long periods each 
time inside the burrow, probably in ovipositing and filling the burrow 
