LIFE IN THE INSECT WORLD. 179 



come perfect insects. But, even then, their 

 teeth would not be strong enough to cut 

 through the hard wood, although they can 

 readily make their way through the thin par- 

 titions which separate the cells. The mother 

 therefore bores a hole from the inside of the 

 lower ceil to the outside of the post, and another 

 of the same kind from the middle cell, and 

 through these the young ones make their escape. 



Another species, called the Mason bee, makes 

 its nest of clay or earth, and the patient little la- 

 borer is sometimes obliged to carry its materials 

 a considerable distance, conveying them in its 

 mouth by small particles. When the nest is 

 finished, it consists of several cells about the 

 size of a thimble. Each of these contains an. 

 egg, and a supply of pollen, mixed with honey. 



Another of these solitary bees has been called 

 the Upholsterer bee, because it lines its nest 

 with the green leaves of plants, or the colored 

 leaves (which botanists call the petals) of 

 flowers. 



One of these makes choice of the scarlet leaves 

 or petals of the poppy. She forms a hole in the 

 ground, three or four inches in depth, and larger 

 at the bottom than the top, the inside being made 



