As to the condition of the beetles stored by clypeata: in the first nest that we opened we found eight, seven of which were dead, while the eighth, which we had just seen stung several times, was alive, but died on the following day. The second nest gave us five beetles, all of them dead and dry. In the other nests that we opened we found nothing, though we knew that the beetles were there had we only been skillful enough to discover them. Of Cerceris deserta, which closely resembles clypeata, but appears later in the season, we had only a single example. We chanced to see her dropping into a crevice among some lumps of earth, and at first could scarcely believe that this was the dwelling–place of a wasp, as there was nothing whatever about it to indicate a nest; and even after we had removed the rough pieces of earth above, we could see nothing of the loose material that must have been carried out. She was much like clypeata in her manners, with the same habit of surveying the world from her doorway, and manifesting the same annoyance at our presence when she was returning to the nest; but she carried in more beetles in the course of the day and worked much more rapidly. Between nine and eleven o’clock one morning she brought in five loads, and some of the journeys occupied only ten minutes. [Illustration: CERCERIS DESERTA: LOCALITY STUDY BEFORE LEAVING NEST] The first time that she found us sitting by her nest she circled about for nearly an hour, seeming unable to make up her mind to enter. At length we withdrew a little way, but still her suspicions were not entirely allayed; and after a further study of the situation she dropped, not into her own nest, but into a large cricket hole near by. Taken aback by this manœuvre, and thinking that perhaps we had a second individual to deal with, we stealthily approached, and peering in, could see the cricket inside, the wasp having slipped beyond. It did not seem possible that the little creature could be endeavoring to deceive us, and yet what other explanation could be offered for her conduct? We again took up our distant position, and after ten minutes more had the satisfaction of seeing the wasp slip out of the false nest and drop instantly into the true one. After a little she became quite accustomed to us, and entered her nest without the least delay. The prey of deserta is held in the mandibles, and while we were watching her she did not support it with the second legs, even when flying.