198 HALF HOUKS WITH INSECTS. IPackard. 



example of what one may do whose time is occupied with 

 multifarious duties is afforded by the results obtained by Sir 

 John Lubbock, and published in a paper entitled "Observa- 

 tions on Bees and Wasps," read at a late (1874) meeting 

 of the Linniean Society of London. In order to ascertain 

 how a honey bee fills out the measure of a day he kept some 

 bees in a hive in his room, and marked some of them and 

 watched their goings in and out. A bee between 7 a.m. and 

 12.52 P.M. made twenty-three visits from the hive to the 

 honey. During an hour and twenty minutes of this time 

 access to the honey was cut off. Another bee between 7.23 

 A.M. and 12.51 p.m. made nineteen visits to the honey, the 

 door being closed for thirty minutes of the time. Still 

 another bee, between 9.19 a.m. and 1.54 p.m., made twenty 

 „ ^ visits to the honey. Other 



data are given, showing the 

 close application of these bees 

 to their business, and that the 

 popular notions as to their 

 busy ways are well founded. 

 They apparently work after 

 noon as well as before noon. 



rrru-.^ e ^ «r Ouc of Lubbock's marked bees 



white-faced Wasp. 



made twenty-eight visits be- 

 tween 12.15 P.M. and 6.14 p.m. Similar experiments made 

 on wasps (Fig. 150, white-faced wasp) show that they emu- 

 late the busy ways of their cousins, the bees. Indeed, it is 

 perhaps not too rash a conclusion to draw from these and 

 observations on other insects that a ceaseless activity per- 

 vades the members of the republic of insects ; and that their 

 moments of rest only result in still greater activity. 



Were it not for this unremitting toil in providing for the 

 welfare of their progeny, which in bees, especially, consists 

 in extracting honey from flowers, many species of plants 

 would become extinct. Nay, it is safe to state that many 



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