The Life of the Bee 



solitary bees of the Gastrilegidae family, 

 that not only does the Osmia know in 

 advance the sex of the egg she will lay, 

 but that this sex is " optional for the 

 mother, who decides it in accordance with 

 the space of which she disposes ; this space 

 being often governed by chance and not 

 to be modified ; and she will deposit a 

 male egg here and a female there." I 

 shall not enter into the details of the 

 great French entomologist's experiments, 

 for they are exceedingly minute, and 

 would take us too far. But whichever 

 be the hypothesis we prefer to accept, 

 either will serve to explain the queen's 

 inclination to lay her eggs in workers' 

 cells, without it being necessary to credit 

 her with the least concern for the future. 



It is not impossible that this slave- 

 mother, whom we are inclined to pity, may 

 be indeed a great amorist, a great volup- 

 tuary, deriving a certain enjoyment, an 



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