366 



GENERAL BIOLOGY 



ther by considering- the number of old maids who were fond of cats, 

 these cat lovers then becoming the deciding factor as to the number of 

 bees a given region might have. 



Various diseases afflict bees, probably largely of a bacterial nature 

 brought about by too long confinement in the hive. Once a disease has 

 taken hold of a hive it may infect any or all other hives in the region. 



GYNANDROMORPHS 



It has been found that among butterflies, ants and bees, it is not un- 

 common to have an abnormal individual which has male characteristics 

 in one part of its body and female 

 characteristics in another. The term 

 gynandromorphs (Fig. 238) has been 

 given such individuals. The more 

 common form such gynandromorphs 

 assume is that of the anterior part of 

 the body being one type and the pos- 

 terior another, or the entire right side 

 may be of one sex and the entire left 

 side another. 



Bees are particularly valuable in 

 bringing about cross fertilization of 

 flowers. In fact, the Bumble Bee is 

 about the only insect visiting red clover 

 which has its mouth parts long enough 

 to reach down for the nectar of that 

 plant, so that if it were not for the bum- 

 ble bee, red clover would probably not 

 grow at all. 



Fig. 239. 



Salvia ap. (One of the Labiatse). a., 

 flower bud ; b-f., various views of the open 

 flower ; an., anther ; st., stigma ; *., projec- 

 tions near the base of the filaments. The lead 

 pencil is made to imitate an insect visiting 

 the flower for pollen. By pressure at the base 

 of the filaments, the anthers are brought into 

 contact with the surface of the pencil, which 

 thus becomes covered with pollen. When the 

 next flower is visited the stigma, having then 

 bent down and spread apart, receives the 

 pollen from the other flower. Thus is ac- 

 complished cross-pollination. In 6., before the 

 visit of the insect, the stigmatic surfaces are 

 still in contact, so that pollination is not pos- 

 sible. (From C. Stuart Gager's "Funda- 

 mentals of Botany" by permission of P. Blak- 

 iston's Son & Co., Publishers.) 



Fig. 238. 



External appearance of gynandromorph. 

 Lateral hermaphroditism of gypsy moth. Left 

 side female; right side male. (After Tasch- 

 enberg. ) 



Orchards which have hives of bees usually show a better harvest 

 of fruit than those without hives. 



