I20 Dr. Carpenter. 



female, which is not the case with the Redbreast ; and all these 

 peculiarities were observed and noted. With regard to the 

 general habits of these birds, but little was learnt. The birds 

 were so successful in avoiding observation that the nest was 

 not discovered until a short time before the young ones flew, 

 and after the nest was discovered the old birds were seldom 

 seen in the garden except when going to or coming from the 

 nest. 



26. — On the Nest of the Carder Bee (Bombus Muscorum.) 



By Alfred Carpenter, Esq., M.D., &c. 



[Read ijth December, 1881.] 



Walking in my field on July 12th, just after it had been 

 mown, it being a dry and hot day, I noticed a small felted ball 

 made of numerous particles of dried grass and moss. It was 

 about the size of an ordinary orange and seemed to be half 

 imbedded in the turf. I touched it with my fingers, and 

 immediately a loud buzzing noise proceeded from it, which 

 made me withdraw very quickly my hand from contact with 

 the mass. A large humble bee made her appearance and 

 buzzed round me in a threatening style. I then more carefully 

 but leisurely examined the lump and slightly raised the upper 

 portion of the dome, and then found a considerable number of 

 humble bees occupying the interior. I rapidly replaced the 

 top of the nest and then watched their proceedings. Three 

 bees in addition to my threatening neighbour immediately set 

 to work to repair the damage I had done, and fine threads of 

 moss were entwined in the base so as to rivet the whole 

 together again. They evidently assisted each other in the 

 work, and half an hour afterwards all trace of the mis- 

 chief was removed, and the soft smooth outline of the 

 dome was restored as perfectly as before. The buzzing 

 ceased about ten minutes after I had given over touching 

 the nest. The pieces of which it was composed were 

 from a quarter to three-quarters of an inch in length, 

 mainly of moss and fine grass, and it was so arranged that 

 watching it as I did afterwards in the rain, I perceived that the 

 water did not penetrate, but ran off into the soil round the 

 nest. It was formed in a depression of the field ; not on a 

 bank, but on a piece of level ground, and yet arranged so that 

 even in heavy rains, I did not find that it allowed any serious 

 amount of water to pass through it. I watched the nest for 

 some time, day by day doing some occasional damage to the 

 dome, and always finding it immediately repaired. One day I 



