April, 1887.] history society of Wisconsin. 99 
we noticed thatalarge hornet (Vespa maculata Linn) had settled 
on the ground near two dead yellow-jackets (V. gennamoa). 
The hornet seized one, flew up to the branch of a tree near by, 
and having cut off the wings and separated the abdomen 
from the thorax and dropped the thorax and flew away 
with the abdomen. Thinking that it might return we 
placed five or six dead wasps near the one that was 
left and stationed ourselves near by to keep watch In - 
teen minutes a hornet came hawking over the ground and settled 
among the wasps. That we might identify him another time we 
now snipped a bit of one wing off with a pair of scissors. A er 
a moment’s delay the hornet flew to a branch seven or eight feet 
above the ground, carrying a wasp. We could plainly see it cut¬ 
ting off the wings and legs. In five minutes it flew away with 
the thorax. We now took ten dead wasps and pinned them m a 
row on a board. In sixteen minutes back came the hornet 
When about twenty feet distant it came down to within two feet 
of the ground and, flying about in a zig-zag fashion, soon found 
the row of dead wasps. The state of affairs seemed to be appre¬ 
ciated at once. The hornet fell to work on a wasp, and alter ou ¬ 
ting off the wings and legs separated the abdomen an came 1 
away. This time and in all its subsequent visits, it did not 
alight on a tree but flew directly out of sight. n w0 ° urs 
this hornet carried off a piece of each of the ten wasps which 
had been pinned to the board. When one part of a wasp had 
been carried away it paid no attention, upon ^turmng to the 
part remaining, even when it was free from the pin and ««d for 
transportation, but began on a new wasp, ^-etim^ ^ 
men was taken and sometimes a thorax. W 
although we sat close by. Du,lug this tome no other^hornet 
came to aid in the work. After the last wasp had been take 
the hornet did not return. WOQr . c thp 
Half an hour later we pinned ten more dead wasps to the 
board. Before dark they were discovered y P ^ 
same species (V. germanica) and two were Carr '^‘ ' 
plan of work followed by these yellow-jackets was that o 
the hornet. Two or three were working at a time but each 
