his prey, the most suitable
of all because the most vulnerable? The chance represented by unity
compared with the indefinite number of entomological species. The odds
are as one to immensity.

Let us continue. The larva of the Scarabaeid is snapped up underground,
for the first time. The victim protests, defends itself after its
fashion, coils itself up and presents to the sting on every side a
surface on which a wound entails no serious danger. And yet the Wasp, an
absolute novice, has to select, for the thrust of its poisoned weapon,
one single point, narrowly restricted and hidden in the folds of the
larva's body. If she miscalculates, she may be killed: the larva,
irritated by the smarting puncture, is strong enough to disembowel her
with the tusks of its mandibles. If she escapes the danger, she will
nevertheless perish without leaving any offspring, since the necessary
provisions will be lacking. Salvation for herself and her race depends
on this: whether at the first thrust she is able to reach the little
nervous plexus which measures barely one-fiftieth of an inch in width.
What chance has she of plunging her lancet into it, if there is nothing
to guide her? The chance represented by unity compared with the number
of points composing the victim's body. The odds are as one against
immensity.

Let us proceed still further. The sting has reached the mark; the fat
grub is deprived of movement. At what spots should the egg now be laid?
In front, behind, on the sides, the back or the belly? The choice is
not a matter of indifference. The young grub will pierce the skin of
its provender at the very spot on which the egg was fixed; and, once an
opening is made, it will go ahead without hesitation. If this point of
attack is ill-chosen, the nurseling runs the risk of presently finding
under its mandibles some essential organ, which should have been
respected until the end in order to keep the victuals fresh. Remember
how difficult it is to complete the rearing when the tiny larva is moved
from the place chosen by the mother. The game promptly becomes putrid
and the Scolia dies.

It is impossible for me to state the precise motives which lead to the
adoption of the spot on which the egg is laid; I can perceive general
reasons, but the details escape me, as I am not well enough versed in
the more delicate questions of anatomy and entomological physiology.
What I do know with absolute certainty is that the same spot is