84 THE HUMBLE-BEE 



old woods, especially those containing decaying 

 tree stumps. Other good places are the edges of 

 meadows, paddocks, rickyards, rough waste ground, 

 and ferneries consisting of grubbed-up tree-roots. 



To discover the nests it is best to walk slowly 

 along the foot of the bank or the outside of the 

 wood, stopping at times, and all the while keeping 

 one's eyes resting on a spot about twenty yards 

 ahead on the bank or in the wood, ready to follow 

 with the eye, if not on foot, every humble-bee that 

 is seen or heard. Here the advantage of a calm 

 day is realised, for the waving of the grass in the 

 wind and the rustling of the foliage make it very 

 difficult to see or hear any bee that is not very 

 close, and impossible to keep it within sight longer 

 than a moment, particularly as the wind may cause 

 its flight to be somewhat erratic. If we are in East 

 Kent, though other parts of the country can hardly 

 differ much in this respect, we shall be rewarded 

 within a few minutes by the sight of a humble-bee 

 either leaving or entering its nest. The beginner, 

 however, is very likely to be puzzled or deceived 

 by the sight of a male of B. pratortim or B. hor- 

 torum lightly flying along the bank and pausing for 

 a moment, without quite settling, at the foot of a 

 certain tree, or in a shady recess under a particular 

 shrub, followed sooner or later by another (see 

 p. 13). But if we see a bee alight and not rise 

 again we may be pretty sure we have found a 

 nest, especially if its flight is heavy and deliberate. 

 Care must be taken not to disarrange the grass 



