NATURE'S CRAFTSMEN 



larvje that feed upon the pollen bread with which the 

 cell has been provisioned by the mother. They eat 

 and grow until they have reached full size, when they 

 change into full-formed insects. 



After maturing, the young bees cut themselves out of 

 their cells in the order of nearness to the vestibule and 

 door, and begin their open-air life. A great change, 

 indeed, it must be for the little fellows — from their dark, 

 cramped quarters to the bright sunlight and the free, 

 busy life of a winged insect coursing the summer air. 



BURROW OF CARPENTER BEE, WITH PARTITIONS, BEE HEAD, AND 

 ONE LARVA IN SITE 



They enter at once upon the round of duties pursued 

 by their mother and by their ancestors. Unlike human 

 beings, who have to go through a long stage of school- 

 ing and training, they do not have to "learn the trade." 

 They are born carpenters. Without teaching and with- 

 out the hints one gets from seeing others at work, they 

 turn to their task and carry it through successfully. 

 What a convenience this must be! Our bee brothers 

 certainly have some advantage over us. 



The bee-carpenters always carry their "kit" with 

 them. Nature has provided them with powerful jaws, 

 or "mandibles," armed with sharp, tough teeth, and 

 operated by muscles of great strength. These are their 

 tools, at once axe and chisel and saw. They are palm^ 



178 



