vil] THE SOCIAL-BEES 89 



far larger communities and are much more pugnacious 

 than the surface-dwellers : there is no truth in the 

 popular belief that humble-bees cannot sting. The 

 history of a single community is not very different in 

 the two groups, and bears a decided resemblance to 

 that of the social- wasps ; for at the end of the season 

 the fertile, impregnated young females hibernate, and 

 the rest of the population perishes. The female, 

 awakened by the first warm days of early spring, 

 searches along hedgerows and banks for a suitable 

 spot either on or in the ground where she may form 

 her nest. Mouse-holes, mole-runs, birds' nests occa- 

 sionally, and perhaps chance hollows in the ground 

 serve their purpose ; though it is doubtful if Bombi 

 ever start the nest ab initio, but do not rather take 

 possession of a site that has previously been tenanted 

 by some other animal. Our knowledge of the habits 

 of these bees is chiefly due to the observations of 

 Huber, Schmiedeknecht, Hoffer, Sladcn and a few 

 others. The female, having selected her nesting 

 place, collects a small bundle of moss ; beneath this 

 she places a cell formed of wax on the outside and a 

 lining of pollen saturated with honey : several eggs 

 are then laid in the cell, and it is then closed. After 

 a few clays' rest, a second cell is placed beside the 

 first, and perhaps a third, all being fastened together 

 by a brownish mixture of pollen and wax, and all 

 containing several eggs. Very soon the larvae hatched 



