The Primary Larva of the Sitares 



Bees, they fasten on them as readily as on 

 the Anthophorae. 



The emergence from the common site be- 

 gun by the male Osmiae is continued by the 

 male Anthophorae and ends with the almost 

 simultaneous emergence of the female Os- 

 mise and Anthophorae. I was easily able 

 to verify this sequence by observing at my 

 own place, in the early spring, the dates at 

 which the cells, collected during the previous 

 autumn, were broken. 



At the moment of their emergence, the 

 male Anthophorae, passing through the gal- 

 leries in which the Sitaris-larvae are waiting 

 on the alert, must pick up a certain number 

 of them; and those among them who, by 

 entering empty corridors, escape the enemy 

 on this first occasion will not evade him for 

 long, for the rain, the chilly air and the 

 darkness bring them back to their former 

 homes, where they take shelter now in one 

 gallery, now in another, during a great part 

 of April. This constant traffic of the males 

 in the entrance-lobbies of their houses and 

 the prolonged stay which the bad weather 

 often compels them to make provide the 

 Sitares with the most favourable opportunity 

 for slipping into the Bees' fur and taking up 

 their position. Moreover, when this state of 

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