VIII 
Mowe eo DISTINGUISH LHE BRITISH 
SEC hes 
PRELIMINARY REMARKS 
Tue humble-bees may be roughly known from 
other bees by their stout build and their long, 
thick clothing of hair. 
The only solitary bees that could be mistaken 
for them are their nearest allies, belonging to the 
genus Axthophora, some of which are almost as 
burly and hairy as humble-bees; but in that genus 
the hair is not so long, the cheeks are so short that 
the mandibles appear to hinge immediately below 
the eyes, and the third joint of the antennz is 
funnel-shaped and at least three times as long as 
the fourth joint. The female of Axthophora 
pilipes, one of the commonest of our wild bees in 
spring, has often been mistaken for a small black 
humble-bee, but, besides the above differences, the 
dense clothing of stiff golden hairs all over the 
outer side of her hind tibiz distinguishes her at 
once. The male of this species is clothed with 
yellowish-brown hairs: he may be readily known 
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