ANATOMY OF THE BEE. 



12 



ANATOMY of; THE BEE. 



the cell; but (luring its stay in the honey-sac 

 ttie nectar has undergone a change. 



Ikit the bee may not regurgitate the hon- 

 ey, for it may pass directly into the chyle- 

 stomach. We see, therefore, that, when a 



FiU. 7. JLUMGITUDINAL SECTION THKOl 611 



THE STOMACH-MOUTH. — Bruennich. 

 Tliis.is further explained in Fig. 1—6. 



swarnf'issnes, the bees, after filhng their 

 honey-sacs to their full capacity (a very 

 snuiU drop), can carry with them a supply of 

 food to^last them for several days; and e^ en 

 while on the wing, through that little stom- 



FIG. H.— TRANSVERSE SECTION THKOl OH 



THE STOMACH-MOUTH IN THE MIDST OF 



OF THE LIPS, THE HONEY-SAC 



BEING EMPTY.— iJrwerjwic/i. 



ach-mouth, they may take nourishment. So 

 much for the alimentary canal, its office in 

 digestion, and the honey-stomach. 



THE NERVOUS SYSTEM. 



By referring to the general engraving 

 there will be seen parallel and medial lines 

 passing almost the entire length of the bee, 

 and linally communicating with the brain. 



(I. Along at irregular intervals will be seen 

 thickened masses called "ganglia.' These 

 are really little brains, and, as in our own 

 bodies, preside over the involuntary muscles. 

 The largest ganglion is the brain, at « — the 

 seat of voluntary action and intelligence. 

 One is surprised in reading through chapters 

 10 and 1 1 of Mr. Cowan's work how thorough- 

 ly scientists have studied the structure of 

 the nervous system as found in the bee. 

 Even tlie tiny brain has been dissected, and 

 its various functions pointed out— that is, 

 what parts communicate with the antennte, 

 what part with the eyes, etc. It is interest- 

 ing to look over the sizes of d iff rent brains 



FIG. y —SAME AS FIG. 8, IJUT THE HONEY- 

 SAC NOT QUITE EMPTY.— Bruennich. 



found in different insects. We quote here 

 a paragraph found on page 70 of Mr. Cowan's 

 book: 



ll is generallj' adniiUed, that the size of the bniiii 

 is ill itropuitLon to the developmeut of intellifctiue; 

 and Duj irdiu, who made careful measurements, 

 gives the following- sizes: In the worker bee tlie 

 brain is the jij of the body; in the ant, ^Ju! the ich- 

 neumon, 4J0; thB cockchafer, 39'.>o; the dytiscus, oi- 

 water-beetlCf jn'oo- 



In man the proportion is 1 to 40, but we nil 

 know thai he is of the very highest ordi r of 

 intelligence. However, it is not surprisiig 

 to learn that the bee has the largest bra.n 

 of any of the insects, exceeding by far even 

 that of the ant, whose intelligence has been 

 admired over and over again. 



THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM. 



It is also interesting to inquire how the 

 bee breathes. By referring to the engrav- 

 ing (page 10) we observe a couple of large air- 

 sacs, called the " trachea," corresponding 

 somewhat to the lungs These are located 

 on either side of the abdomen, as at t. They 

 are then divided and subdivided into small, 



