stance of this in a colony of hornets, which had formed their nest in the trunk of a tree; and at the distance of about a hundred yards was an out-house, some of the posts of which were much decayed, and all the hornets appeared to resort to it: there was a constant flight to and from the out-house, and none were going in other directions.
Sp. 3. Vespa rufa, Linn, and Fab.
The Female is 8–9 lines in length. Head black; clypeus yellow, a black line down the centre, with an anchor-shaped termination, sometimes the line is abbreviated, forming a simple dot; mandibles yellow, teeth dark ferruginous; a crown-shaped spot at the base of the antennæ, a line at the inner margin,
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Vespa rufa. g male. h female. i neuter.
and behind at the upper margin of the eyes, yellow; then down to the mandibles covered with silvery hair. Thorax black; the tegulae with a line from them to the collar, a spot under each wing, and two on the scutellum, yellow; legs yellow, femora black, yellow at the knees, generally a black spot behind, on the anterior tibiae. The abdomen varies in its markings; the first segment has sometimes a central and two lateral spots black, united by a ferruginous band, the second segment has a broadish band, dentate in the centre, uniting with a central spot, black, the remaining segments have separated black dots; in others, the black dots on the first segment unite, forming a subinterrupted black band, tinged with rufous, the spots on the second segment unite with the central dentation, the rest separated; the first and second segment vary greatly, one having more or less of a rufous tinge.
Neuter.—Length 5½–7 lines. Exactly agreeing with the female, admitting perhaps of greater variety in the colouring of the abdomen, the first and second segments being sometimes entirely rufous, with a narrow yellow margin.
The Male is 7–8 lines long. Head black; antennæ filiform, the scape yellow in front, otherwise coloured as in the other sexes; the two spots on the scutellum have generally an additional yellow streak under them; the abdomen is sometimes almost destitute of markings and entirely yellow, at others beautifully variegated with rufous.
This is an exceedingly beautiful and distinct species. It is not so
