510 



INSECTS ABROAD. 



yellow, and the abdomen is black, and deeply fringed with golden 

 hair. As is the case with many of the bee-tribe, this beautiful 

 adornment can only be seen in perfection when the insect has 

 been newly developed, for the beautiful plumage cannot endure 

 rough work, and suffers so much from contact with the world, 

 that a bee of a day old and one which has lived for three or four 

 weeks would hardly be recognized as the same species, even 

 though they may have issued from the same nest. Seven species 

 of this genus are in the British Museum. 



All entomologists are aware of the singular resemblances that 

 occur between certain lepidoptera and hymenoptera, the " clear- 

 wing" moths of our own country being excellent examples. 

 Curious as is the shape of this bee, it is exactly imitated by a 

 beautiful Assamese moth, called Trochilium Ashtarofh. The 

 colours are different, but the resemblance of form is so perfect, 

 that if the outline of either were drawn, it would not be easy to 

 determine the insect which it was meant to represent; even 

 the deeply-plumed hind-legs are represented in the moth. 



Of all the Solitary Bees, the genus Osmia is the most interest- 

 ing, on account of the singular variety of its architecture. Some 

 ten species are known to inhabit England. However the dif- 

 ferent species of Osmia may vary in detail of architecture, 



they all agree in the habit 

 of making cells and stock- 

 ing them with food for the 

 future young. Several species 

 make their cells in the dead 

 stems of the blackberry, the 

 rose, and similar shrubs, dig- 

 ging out the pith, and so 

 making a series of cells, end 

 to end. They are, however, 

 very much given to saving 

 themselves needless labour, and are in the habit of taking 

 advantage of any tubes that they may find. The straws of 

 thatched roofs are favourite localities with some species, but 

 they will sometimes make use of the most singular and un- 

 expected objects as dwelling-places. 



Any hole or empty tube serves to be adapted to the purposes 



Fig. 277.— Omnia tricolor. 



(Mack, barre'l with orange.) 



