82 



BKANCH ARTHROPODA. 



FIG. 142. 



Bom' bus pro to' rum. Bumble-bee and Cells. 



early opening flowers, she deposits a number of eggs. 



These soon hatch, when the 

 larvae feed upon the pollen, 

 and finally spin for them- 

 selves pupa cases, from 

 which they soon emerge as 

 workers. They now busy 

 themselves in caring for 

 their newly born sisters. 

 Finally, late in the fall, the 

 queen of this now numer- 

 ous family, lays eggs which 

 develop into males and fe- 

 males, the former of which, 

 as well as the workers, soon 



die. The females remain dormant until spring, when 



they become queens, the founders of new colonies. 



The Hive-bee, [Apis mettifica] (a' pis mei IIP I ka), 



which supplies us with honey and wax, has a similar his- 

 tory. When winter begins, the inmates of a 



hive consist of a queen and a multitude of 



workers. These huddle together, keeping 



each other warm, while they feed on the 



honey which was collected during the 



summer. As spring approaches, the queen 



lays large numbers of eggs, perhaps as 



many as three thousand in a single day. Female, or Queen ? ; 



Worker ; and Male, 



The eggs, placed in ordinary cells filled or Drone $ , of the 

 with honey on which the larvas feed, de- 

 velop into workers ; those placed in " drone cells," develop 

 into males ; and those laid in the much larger cells, con- 

 structed on the edge of the comb, develop into queens 

 The colony soon increases in size, and the old queen, 



FIG. 143. 



