( lxvii ) 



Prof. Poulton said that Dr. R. ('. L. Perkins, who pos- 

 sesses the F. Smith British. Aculeates, had informed him that 

 the collection contains 4 Polistes gallica of both sexes, with 

 the note beneath them in Smith's handwriting : " Mr. Home 

 thinks that he took it near Swanage (Dorset) ? '. " The exist- 

 ence of these specimens was recorded by Dr. Perkins in E.M.M. S 

 1917, p. 229. Dr. Perkins had written : " I suspect Polistes 

 gallica has been not infrequently brought over with shrubs 

 or in other ways, and has once in a way started a colony 

 only to be sooner or later exterminated by our climate. Three 

 species of Polistes (one American and two Oriental) have 

 become fully established in the Hawaiian Islands from acci- 

 dental importations, and many specimens of a S. American 

 species were brought in steamers to England (1866-1869). 

 These also are in F. Smith's collection." 



Giantism in male bees. — Prof. Poulton exhibited the 

 illustrative specimens and read the following paper for Dr. 

 R. C. L. Perkins, who, he much regretted, was unable to be 

 present. Extracts from two letters by Dr. Perkins threw 

 further light on this interesting and difficult problem, and 

 explained how Dr. Perkins came to study it. 



" March 13, 1018. 

 "' A few years ago, when writing my unpublished account 

 of A ml re mi and its parasites, I puzzled much over the giant 

 males, and could think of nothing but the suggestions I have 

 written in the accompanying note. It seems very curious 

 that neither Saunders nor Smith nor any others, so far as I 

 know, seem to have paid any special attention to this subject." 



•■ April 16, 1918. 



" I begin to think that difference in size of Andrena must 

 be somehow due to the amount of food. It is very hard to 

 investigate the matter here. I got out about a dozen cells 

 of Andrena clarkella, Kirby, the other day, and all the pollen 

 lumps appeared to the naked eye about the same in size. 

 When my boys came home and saw these they both exclaimed 

 at once, ' What small lumps, much smaller than the ones we 

 got the other day ! '■ — from a neighbouring colony. They did 



