HUNTING WILD BEES 



the popular name of "cuckoo bees," and fittingly, since 

 they image on a smaller scale the habit of that rather 

 disreputable bird to foist upon nobler birds its eggs, the 

 offspring from which grow up to oust its mates from 





•■"0:&' 



MALE HALICTUS BEE GUARDING HIS BURROW AGAINST PIIORA CARA, 

 A PARASITIC FLY 



their own parents' nest. But, for that matter, one 

 might get quite as apt a name from the annals of our 

 own race, and not go far afield. Cuckoo habit, indeed, 

 runs through the whole octave of living things. 



The cuckoo bees, many of which belong to the genus 

 Nomada, have the grace to live on good terms with their 

 hosts, and may be seen in the adult stage, sipping 

 nectar from the same flowers or droning their peaceful 

 cadences around the same nests. But they are robbers, 



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