. Natural history. For the use of schools and families. Zoology. MEMBKAH^E-WINGED INSECTS. 275. 470. Tlie Mud-wasp, Fig. 213, is one of the sand-bur- rowers. The fol- lowing is the ac- count given of it by Jaeger. "This insect is more than an inch long, and of a dark blue- purple color. It makes its abode in the loose, sandy ground, and when digging its hole re- Fig. Mud-wasp. scmblcs a dog dig- ging after mice, throwing the earth under it toward its hind body with its fore feet. If the pile of sand be- comes too high or troublesome, it places itself upon it, and throws the earth
. Natural history. For the use of schools and families. Zoology. MEMBKAH^E-WINGED INSECTS. 275. 470. Tlie Mud-wasp, Fig. 213, is one of the sand-bur- rowers. The fol- lowing is the ac- count given of it by Jaeger. "This insect is more than an inch long, and of a dark blue- purple color. It makes its abode in the loose, sandy ground, and when digging its hole re- Fig. Mud-wasp. scmblcs a dog dig- ging after mice, throwing the earth under it toward its hind body with its fore feet. If the pile of sand be- comes too high or troublesome, it places itself upon it, and throws the earth behind it with great force until it is leveled. As soon as its subterranean abode is pre- pared, it seizes a large Spider, or a caterpillar, or some other insect, stings it in the neck, and then carries it into its hole. It is curious to see one of these Wasps take hold of a Cockroach, seizing it by one of its long anten- nse, and continually walking backward, compelling the Cockroach to follow, notwithstanding its great reluctance and constant opposition, until both have arrived at the hole, where the Wasp kills it by a sting in the neck, then tears into pieces, and carries it into her subterranean dwelling as food for her ; 471. The family of Vespidae, or true Wasps, is distin- guished from the other Hymenoptera by the folding of the wings when at rest throughout their entire length. They are generally not solitary, but social, the communi- ties, however, being small. The neuters are not, like the neuters of the Ant tribe, destitute of wings. Those Wasps which are solitary have no neuters, and their hab- its are like the diggers just noticed. There are many. Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Hooker, Worthington, 1806-1867. New York, Harper & Brothers
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectzoology, bookyear1883
