HYMENOPTERA. 357 



cocoon inside. All around the cradles are large round cells, entirely 

 different in form from the cradles, in which the honey is stored. It 

 is probable that the males, the workers, and the females, live together 

 in great harmony, and even that there is in each 

 nest more than one female, for the absence of the 

 sting must prevent any combats. If a few cakes 

 of the Meiipona 's honeycomb are moved into the 

 hollow of a tree, they always found there a new 

 colony. We may conclude from this that the Fig 332 



workers procure for themselves females whenever A species o'f Meiipona. 

 they want them by means of a special sort of food. 

 The savage inhabitants of the American forests collect this honey ; 

 but, with the carelessness of uncivilised man, they at the same time 

 destroy the nests of these precious insects. They have now begun 

 to domesticate certain species of Meliponas, by introducing them into 

 earthen pots or wooden cases. These insects have been brought to 

 Europe, but they have always perished in the first cold weather. 

 During the summer of 1863 there was, in the Museum of Natural 

 History of Paris, a nest of Meiipona scutellaris from Brazil, but it did 

 not prosper. 



THE HUMBLE OR BUMBLE BEES. 



If in the month of March one passes through the fields, which are 

 beginning to get green, or through the woods, still deprived of their 

 leaves, there may be seen, hovering hither and thither, great hair) 

 insects, resembling gigantic bees. These are the females of a species 

 of bee, called by the French " bourdons," from the buzzing noise 

 they produce; and by us "humble bees," probably from their German 

 name "hummel," given for the same reason. These females have 

 been awakened by the spring sun. They examine the cavities of 

 stones, the heaps of moss, and the holes in banks, &c., seeking for a 

 suitable spot to construct a nest for their progeny. 



The humble bees are of the same family as the bees, whom they 

 resemble in their organisation. Like them, they are divided into 

 males, females, and neuters, or workers. But their companies only 

 last a year. At the end of autumn the whole population has become 

 extinct, with the exception of the pregnant females, which pass the 

 winter in a state of torpor at the bottom of some hole, where they 

 wait till the spring to perpetuate their race. Their societies comprise 

 generally only a small number of individuals, from fifty to three 

 hundred. They are of peaceful habits, their ephemeral existence 

 beginning and ending with the flower season. 



