Killers of the Insect World

[Music] it is strange indeed that the continued existence of most animals depends on ability to destroy each other yet due to this law a balance is established between all creatures and no one kind becomes excessive the praying mantis the most formidable of insect hunters in its world it is a demon waiting silently with its front legs alert to grasp between its cruel Spurs any prey that may chance to come its way a butterfly is quickly snatched from the air and mercilessly it is made a meal this creature is even terrifying for us to behold so imagine its appearance to a timid insect when suddenly confronted by this unusual creature aside from all this it is one of man's best friends for it helps keep in check many insect pests the muhammadans consider this insect sacred because of its praying attitude which is in reality one of aggressiveness the hunting wasp emerges from her home a home hole in the ground carefully she circles it to establish its exact location before going forth to provision it for her young the WASP sometimes has to wander far a field in search of prey and Huntress though she is she is always in danger from other Hunters the Mantis cites the WASP unknowingly she walks into the Trap instantly it is between the front legs of the Mantis she struggles to free herself and gradually the death grip is broken the WASP quickly Springs to safety free once more to continue her search for prey the selection of which is made by Instinct and is of Paramount necessity to the continuance of her kind the WASP instinctively knows the environment of its game every nook and corner is searched for its natural prey the cricket the cricket is cited little does it realize that it will serve the most scientific of all Hunters quickly the WASP is upon it she does not tear her prey apart her methods are more ingenious the cricket must not be killed only paralyzed this is done by the wasp's Stinger a tiny drop of venomous liquid will act as an anesthetic depriving the cricket of movement and still keeping it alive the cricket struggles to free itself while the Assassin calmly gets into position to deliver the Sting with the skill of a surgeon the Lancet is driven toward its Mark a rapid thrust and the nerve center is reached the mysterious fluid is injected and all is over the cricet is paralyzed carefully the WASP goes over the cricket's body with her tongue why this is done no one knows let us reflect a moment upon what we have seen a surgical method used by the WASP far beyond Beyond any Technique we are aware of her victim is not a corpse but a living thing incapable of movement and with all the freshness of a living insect again the mysterious licking process is resorted to then the WASP carefully straddles the cricket's body and picks it up by a TNA the cricket is then carried to the wasp's home where it is placed in a Cell alongside other cricket who have met a similar fate an egg is attached to each Cricket's body and upon hatching the paralyzed Cricket will serve as food for the wasp's young remarkable indeed is the fact that this entire action on the part of the WASP is done solely for her young and these young when fully grown will repeat the process this knowledge being innate in the species the spider too is a clever Hunter here we see one with her egg case suspended from her web the egg case is spun by this ingenious Weaver and in turn eggs are laid through an opening in the end what could be more convenient especially when several hundred eggs are to be carried about Mrs spider is now cutting the egg case loose from its strands for when she moves She carries her future family suspended from her legs the spider's web is a trap a snare woven to catch food the hunting wasp in searching for more crickets flies and is caught in the web of the spider she struggles apparently sensing her fate immediately the Mistress of the snare is upon the WASP ingeniously the spider starts spinning her web and winding it about the body of the WASP with her hind legs the WASP is completely tied up and struggles helplessly soon the spider returns though in no hurry as there is nothing to fear the game is completely en snared the spider hunts out the vital part of the wasp and with ease so that life in another form may continue the wasp and meshed in the spider's web is carried up to the egg case to serve as food for the spiders young but even as clever a creature as this spider has plenty to fear the soul PID patiently Waits on the ground for the spider to descend to attach a new strand of her web she no sooner is in reach of the Soul PID than she is snatched from life such seems to be the law the existence of one animal is always dependent upon the suffering of another the soul PID also is not without enemies for a scorpion is approaching a creature that commands the respect of all crawling and creeping things it's the jaws of the suid against the Stinger of the Scorpion suddenly they come face to face apparently neither fears the other without ceremony they Rush at each other but the Scorpion is the stronger of the two and grasps the foe between its powerful claws attached to the rear end of the body is the stinger and after struggling for position it is quickly brought into play the soul PID has lost it was no match for the poisonous stinger which has made the Scorpion the master of all small creatures animals not only have other animals to fear but like men their own kind are often their most Relentless enemies another scorpion is attracted to the kill he pugnaciously senses the other's presence and both apparently become imbued with a desire to fight judging from the deliberate action each seems to realize the other is no common antagonist but a foe that will fight to the Finish from this we can readily see why the Ancients gave the Scorpion a place in astrology as being symbolic of pugnaciousness what a Pity these great Fighters cannot sense the utter futility of their combat first they cautiously creep toward one another then with a sudden rush they are entangled in each other's claws with a skill of fencers they ward off each other's blows for their sting is as fatal to themselves as to other animals apparently aware of this they faint with their huge Claws and fastening themselves in Vice like grips they roll and toss in their effort to gain a point of Vantage they break only to reunite in a more terrific struggle truly this is a duel to the death both trying for an opening to thrust their deadly Stingers into vital Parts these are the soft membranes between the hard segments of their body coverings and the most accessible places for The Stingers to pen R equally matched in strength and courage and equipped by nature to be victorious over their natural enemies they are driven forth by an instinctive Force to their own destruction soon The Stingers find vital spots again and again the poison is injected and gradually takes effect until a powerful thrusts become mere spasmic quivering muscles relax they release their holes both have become victims of their own specialization for preserving thus completing a cycle in the struggle for life among the animals [Music] [Applause]