CH. III.J THE HIVE BEE. 55 



bees, both workers and queen, know the period of 

 oviposition proper for each kind of egg, and take 

 care to provide suitable cells at a proper period. 



Huber removed all the worker-cells from a hive, 

 and left nothing but male cells ; the bees, instead of 

 repairing the damage done to the hive, by uniting 

 the fragments of comb, seemed quite disheartened, 

 went into the fields, but returned unladen. The 

 queen, too, hesitated about laying her worker-eggs 

 in the large male cells, and at last they were seen 

 to drop from her at random. However, six eggs 

 were deposited regularly ; but the workers did not 

 treat them very carefully. They were removed 

 next day, and the cells left empty. In order to re- 

 animate them, he gave the bees a piece of comb, 

 composed of worker-cells, but which were filled 

 with male instead of worker-eggs. For twelve days 

 the bees obstinately abstained from working in 

 wax, but at last they positively removed the whole 

 of the male brood, and cleaned the cells, just as if 

 they had been aware that the eggs which were to 

 come from the queen required worker-cells. As 

 soon as this was done, the queen no longer dropped 

 her eggs at random, but deposited them in the cells. 

 The male cells were then taken away, and the 

 worker-cells restored ; upon which the ordinary la- 

 bours of the hive were resumed. If the workers 

 reasoned and felt, here is a fact which would at 

 once attest their foresight, and their affection for 

 their queen ; they knew she required worker-cells, 

 and accordingly, to accommodate her, they pulled 

 out the male, brood, which, under other circum- 

 stances, they would have fondly nourished. 



Hence it is reasonable to infer that the ovaries of 

 the queen contain a regular succession of eggs, and 

 that the bees know this as well as herself, at least 

 they act as if they knew it. There is, however, a 

 curious effect produced by retarding the fecundation 

 of the queen. Huber found, that if fecundation 



