3 6o 



THE 1NSRCT WORLD. 



spherical covering of moss, made into a sort of felt and lined with 

 wax. Fig. 335 represents, in its entirety, a nest of this humble bee. 



The workers also take their part in rearing the eggs. They bring 

 the paste, which they slip into the cells to the larvae by a small hole, 

 which is shut immediately afterwards. Later, they again give their 



Fig. 335. Nest of the Moss Humble Bee (Bombus muscor 



assistance in disengaging the pupae from their envelopes. In short, 

 they make themselves generally useful ; but they have one bad fault : 

 they are very fond of eating the eggs laid by the mother. They try 

 to seize them as she deposits them, or drag them from the cells, and 

 suck their contents. And so the mother is obliged to be incessantly 

 defending her eggs against the voracity of the workers, and to be con- 



