60 BRITISH' BEES. 



approach the vegetable kingdom makes to the higher 

 phase of sensiferous life. 



The clothing and colouring of bees are very various, 

 but the gayest are the parasites, red and yellow, with 

 their various tints, and white and cream-colour decorate 

 them. The ordinary colour is deep brown, or chestnut, 

 or black. Where the pubescence is not dense, they are 

 often deeply punctured, and exhibit many metallic tinges. 

 Many are thickly clothed with long hair, and this, espe- 

 cially in the Bombi and Apathi, is sometimes of bright 

 gay colour, yellow, red, white, of a rich brown, or an in- 

 tense black, sometimes in bands of different tints upon 

 the same insect, and sometimes of one uniform hue. 



