20 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



tion against insect enemies, and made no mention of their exclu 

 sion of light from the interior of the nests. Certain observations 

 I have made lead me to form conclusions differing somewhat from 

 those recorded by Mr. Girard, and I will, therefore, mention 

 briefly some of them, as well as show you entrance-tubes and 

 combs constructed by bees of these genera that you may judge for 

 yourselves as to the materials used in each. 



Melipona. In 1883 I was kindly shown by Mr. Drory himself 

 his collection of 30 or 40 nests and hives of Melipona and Tri- 

 goiia mostly the former. The entrance-tubes and barriers, where 

 constructed, were, as far as I could determine, of the same mate 

 rial as the entrance-tube leading from the flight-hole to the brood- 

 nest of the hive now before you, contained in the original case in 

 which it was imported from Brazil, and which was kindly pre 

 sented to me by Mr. Drory in acknowledgment of specimens of 

 East Indian bees I had given to him. This nest or hive is one of 

 Melipona scutellaris Fabr. It can be readily seen that consider 

 able difference exists between the material of the entrance-tube 

 and that of the honey-cells and labyrinthine envelope of the brood- 

 nest. I have examined the material of entrance-tubes and cells 

 with considerable care, and find that of the tubes to be quite hard 

 and brittle at ordinary temperatures, under which wax is some 

 what yielding and pliable; in burning it gives no odor of wax, 

 but rather that of some resinous gum. The tube where it passes 

 through the labyrinthine envelope to reach the brood-nest, and 

 also where, outside this envelope, honey-cells are attached to it, 

 undoubtedly has incorporated in its mass more or less wax of the 

 peculiar brown color and soft, almost greasy, consistency charac 

 teristic of the wax of Melipona. But all parts of the tube which 

 are separated from the nest proper seem to be composed wholly 

 of resinous substances corresponding to the propolis or so-called 

 " bee-glue" of our Apis. The nest itself, made up of the store- 

 cells, labyrinthine envelope-, and within this the brood-combs, is 

 built wholly of the "brown wax, granular and soft," of which 

 Mr. Girard speaks. The two substances seem to me to be similar 

 only in color. Being quite familiar with all of the substances 

 produced by bees, I feel sure I am not mistaken in identifying the 

 material of the entrance-tube proper as corresponding to the 

 propolis gathered by our Apis mellifica, and I am much surprised 

 that they should have been confounded. 



Trigona. During the early part of iSSi I passed several 

 weeks on the Island of Ceylon and while there examined about 

 a dozen nests of Trigona located where built. These were all 

 found in the more open portions of the country. None were 

 noticed in the denser forest regions, although hollow trees suitable 

 for nesting-places were not lacking there. The nests, with one 

 exception, were in the hollows of small stubs or branches of low 



