222 
Psyche 
[Vol. 87 
from the others, since the wasp had incorporated the leaf bases into 
its nest. 
The first nest, collected near Blunder Creek, in the southern part of 
the city of Brisbane, was actually a group of three nests on roots only 
a few cm apart; we have no way of knowing whether or not all were 
made by one female. The three nests varied in length from 4 to 6.5 cm 
and all were about 2 cm wide at their maxima (Fig. 2). Over the next 
few weeks 16 wasps emerged from the three nests, each leaving an 
emergence hole about 3 mm in diameter. The second nest was a set of 
two nests, of form very similar to the first set, one 2.5 cm wide and 5 
cm long, the other 2 cm wide and 6.5 cm long. This nest was collected 
along the Brisbane River near Somerset Dam, some 60 km NW of 
Brisbane. Over the next few days we reared from this nest 3 P. rufipes, 
2 P. westwoodi, and a miltogrammine fly, Pachyophthalmus sp. We 
believe that westwoodi had probably appropriated cells in a nest 
constructed by rufipes, as that species is known to occupy hollow 
cavities (see below). 
The third nest was collected in late-summer, also at Blunder Creek, 
Brisbane. It was similar in shape to the others, 7.5 cm long by 2 cm 
wide, but had several leaves protruding from it (Fig. 1). This nest was 
on a pendant Acacia branch about 1.3 m above the ground and a 
short distance from the edge of a backwater of Blunder Creek. When 
this nest was found a female was plastering mud over the outside; she 
was taken for identification. The nest was dissected and found to 
contain ten cells, all broadly elliptical, 6.5-8 mm in diameter and 
8.5-12 mm in length. Each was separated by at least 2 mm of mud and 
from the outside of the nest by about 7 mm of mud. 
The number of spiders per cell varied from 4 fairly large ones to 9 
small ones (x=7.1). Four cells contained an egg, in each case laid 
longitudinally, laterally on the base of the abdomen of one of the 
spiders. The remaining 5 cells contained wasp larvae of various sizes. 
All of the 47 spiders preserved proved to be Salticidae, of the 
following species: 
Euryattus bleekeri (Doleschall)—24 
Jotus braccatus Koch—5 
Saitis nigriceps (Keyserling)—18 
