HUNTING WILD BEES 



thieves besiege the doors to plunder the contents of the 

 nurseries or infect them with parasitic eggs. 



Here, then, we see the male on sentry-duty, his body 

 blocking up the gateway and his rounded head closing 

 up the entrance. When his mate comes home with 

 her bee-basket full, the guard backs into the vestibule, 

 which is large enough to allow the passing of the female, 

 and returns to his post. A loving welcome awaits the 

 incomer, for the door-keeper, with open mandibles and 

 waving antennae, the apian style of embrace, greets his 

 partner right joyously. Thus the good mistresses of our 

 homes, and their maids at the back gate, are not the 

 only order of housekeeping creatures that exchange 

 kisses at one's doorways. 



But other sorts of greeting are seen at these portals. 

 The velvet ant (Mutilla Canadensis Blake), a beautiful 

 but dangerous neighbor, besets the HaUctus gates. If a 

 female chance to be on guard, she rushes forth and 

 pluckily grapples with her great and vicious intruder. 

 A rough-and-tumble fight ensues, from which HaUctus- 

 madam often, though not always, escapes. But her 

 home-coming now is not so heartily greeted as afore. 

 Her tussle with Mutilla has left some hostile taint upon 

 her person which, although she has tarried to preen 

 herself, her nest-mate at the gate perceives, and holds 

 her back mitil, after due inspection, her identity is 

 made plain. Should the male chance to be too slow 

 in coming to a decision, the overtired female will thrust 

 the sting-clad abdomen into the door, as much as to 

 say: "See! Do you not know the sight and scent of 

 your partner's weapon?" The argument is always con- 

 clusive. 



The male, whose discretion overtops his valor, has 



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