art, its own plan, its one method.

The nature of the food has no more effect upon the larva's talents than the
environment in which it lives or the materials employed. The proof of this
is furnished by Stiza ruficornis, another builder of cocoons in grains of
sand cemented with silk. This sturdy Wasp digs her burrows in soft
sandstone. Like the Mantis-killing Tachytes, she hunts the various Mantides
of the countryside, consisting mainly of the Praying Mantis; only her large
size requires them to be more fully developed, without however having
attained the form and the dimensions of the adult. She places three to five
of them in each cell.

In solidity and volume her cocoon rivals that of the largest Bembex; but it
differs from it, at first sight, by a singular feature of which I know no
other example. From the side of the shell, which is uniformly smoothed on
every side, a rough knob protrudes, a little clod of sand stuck on to the
rest. The work of Stizus ruficornis can at once be recognized, among all
the other cocoons of a similar nature, by this protuberance.

Its origin will be explained by the method which the larva follows in
constructing its strong-box. At the beginning, a conical bag is woven of
pure white silk; you might take it for the initial eel-trap of the
Bembeces, only this bag has two openings, a very wide one in front and
another, very narrow one at the side. Through the front opening the Stizus
provides itself with sand as and when it spends this material on encrusting
the interior. This strengthens the cocoon; and the cap which closes it is
made next. So far it is exactly like the work of the Bembex. We now have
the worker enclosed, engaged in perfecting the inner wall. For these final
touches a little more sand is needed. It obtains it from outside by means
of the aperture which it has taken the precaution of contriving in the side