BUTTERFLIES AND BEES 



31 



by means of which the animal breathes. But there are distinc- 

 tions in wings and legs and mouth, as well as in other details in 

 all parts of the body. In development the insects of this order 

 (which includes wasps and hornets, ichneumon flies and ants) 

 show a complete metamorphosis. 



26. Division of labor. One of the most interesting facts about 

 the bee and ant order {Hymenoptera, see page 84) is the com- 

 paratively high development of social habits. The beehive and 

 the ant colony have for ages represented to students a w^onderful 

 example of the possibilities of social life. There is complete 



Fig- 13- 



The honeybee 



The insect develops from an egg, a, into a tiny wormlike grub, or larva, b. The larva 

 feeds upon material in its chamber, or cell; the food is supplied by adult bees. When 

 the larva reaches its full growth (in about five days), the cell is closed with wax; 

 during the resting stage, or pupa period, c (which lasts about thirteen days), the 

 insect is transformed into an adult. There are three kinds of individuals : drones, 

 or males, d; queens, or females, e; and workers, /. The queen develops in an extra 

 large cell, g, which projects above the surface of the comb and is supplied with spe- 

 cial food. (The larvae are shown rather stretched out in their cells; they really lie at 



the bottom curled up in a ring) 



cooperation of large numbers of individuals, year after year, 

 without any sign of friction or conflict within the group. There 

 is also a marked degree of what we call division of labor, 

 whereby each individual attends to a single part, or a very few 

 parts, of the total work done by the colony as a whole. Among 

 the bees cells are constantly being built of wax. Honey is being 

 made; nectar gathered. Prepared food is being stored in the 

 cells. After the eggs hatch out, the young larvae are looked after. 

 At any given time the gathering of material, the storing of food, 

 the nursing of the young, the cleaning of the hive, the building 



