18 BEHAVIOR OF HONEY BEE IN POLLEN COLLECTING. 



On the other hand, it is believed by some that the middle legs are 

 directly instrumental in filling the baskets. This method is indicated 

 in the following quotation from Fleischmann and Zander (1910) 

 (translated) : 



The second pair of legs transfer the pollen to the hind legs, where it is 

 heaped up in the pollen masses. The tibia of each hind leg is depressed on its 

 outer side, and upon the edges of this depression stand two rows of stiff hairs 

 which are bent over the groove. The brushes of the middle pair of legs rub 

 over these hairs, liberating the pollen, which drops into the baskets. 



A suggestion of the true method is given by Hommell (1906), 

 though his statements are somewhat indefinite. After describing 

 the method by which pollen is collected, moistened, and passed to 

 the middle legs he states that (translated) "the middle legs place 

 their loads upon the pollen combs of the hind legs. There the sticky 

 pollen is kneaded and is pushed across the pincher {a traverse la 

 jnnce)^ is broken up into little masses and accumulates within the 

 corbicula. In accomplishing this, the legs cross and it is the tarsus 

 of the right leg which pushes the pollen ax3ross the pincher of the 

 left, and reciprocally. The middle legs never function directly in 

 loading the baskets, though from tune to time their sensitive ex- 

 tremities touch the accumulated mass, for the sake of giving assur- 

 ance of its position and size." 



The recent valuable papers of Sladen (1911, 1912, «, h, c, c/, and e), 

 who was the first to present a true explanation of the function of 

 the abdominal scent gland of the bee, give accounts of the process 

 by which the pollen baskets are charged, wdiich are in close accord 

 with the writer's ideas on this subject. It is a pleasure to be able to 

 confirm most of Sladen 's observations and conclusions, and weight is 

 added to the probable correctness of the two descriptions and in- 

 terpretations of this process by the fact that the writer's studies and 

 the conclusion based upon them were made prior to the appearance 

 of Sladen's papers and quite independent of them. His description 

 of the basket-loading process itself is so similar to the writer's own 

 that a conq^lete quotation from him is unnecessary. A few differences 

 of opinion will, however, be noted while discussing some of the move- 

 ments which the process involves. As will later be noted, our ideas 

 rt^garding the question of pollen moistening, collecting, and transfer- 

 ence are souiewliat dirt'erent. 



ADDITIONAL DETAILS OF THE BASKET-LOADING PROCESS. 



The point at which pollen enters the basket can best be determined 

 by examining the corbicula; of a bee shortly after it has reached a 

 flower and before much pollen has been collected. Within each 

 pollen basket of such a bee is found a small mass of pollen, which lies 



