208 [September, 



Pastor Konow, dealing in " Societas Entomologica" (1898) with 

 various questionable records in old writers, mentions a Macrophya 

 heematopus of Newman, which, he says, is really the male of M. rufipes. 



As it would seem, from the above, that early British records of 

 heematopus must he regarded with some suspicion, and as 1 certainly 

 never myself saw a British specimen having the structural (as apart 

 from the colour) characters of that species, I took the opportunity of 

 a recent passage through London to visit Mr. Cameron's collection, 

 now in the Natural History Museum, hoping to see for myself what 

 the insects were from which he had drawn up his descriptions of the 

 two species. In this, however, I was completely disappointed ; for 

 that collection includes no specimen at all either of hcematopus or of 

 rufipes ! This is strange, for rufipes, at least, is certainly no rarity in 

 this country. However, such is the fact ! Neither hcematopus or 

 rufipes is represented, except by blank spaces, in the Cameron col- 

 lection. 



It seems to me that, under the above circumstances, Macrophya 

 hcematopus, Pz , has at present no satisfactory claim to a place in the 

 British List of Tenthredinidce, and that the insects hitherto recorded 

 under that name are in all likelihood merely varieties of rufipes, Linn. 



Woking : July, 1902. 



A SCENT-PRODUCING ORGAN IN THE ABDOMEN OF THE WORKER 

 OF APIS MELLIF1CA. 



liT F. W. L. S LAD EN, F.E. S. 



In investigating the phenomenon known as the " joyful hum " of 

 bees I have been led to make some observations which have deeply 

 iuterested me, and which appear not to have been recorded by others. 



It has long been known that bees when swarming will, under 

 certain circumstances, set up a peculiar hum, which seems to be at- 

 tractive to their comrades. 



This hum can be artificially produced by lifting a comb covered 

 with bees out of a hive and shaking off the bees on to the alighting 

 board of the hive. The bees nearest to the entrance commence to 

 hum as they enter the hive. By this act they draw to themselves the 

 other bees scattered around, and these bees, as soou as they have 

 joined the main body, will also commence humming. Thus, the bees 

 that have been attracted attract others in their turn, and this process 

 coutinues until all have passed into the hive. 



