190 



THE HUMBLE-BEE 



VIII 



Fig. 28. 



taken many nests, always on the surface of the 

 ground, and frequently in long grass on roadside 

 banks. It commences to nest earlier than any 

 of the other carder-bees, even than 

 agrorum. The cocoons are deep 

 yellow, and the wax is very dark. In 

 191 1 I found three nests in a suffi- 

 Dia^anTof co- ciently early stage to ascertain the 

 coons in a com- numDer an d position of the cocoons 



mencing nest of B. 



derhameiius (hod- in the first batch. In each nest 



zontal section). ^ numbered eight| and they we re 



arranged symmetrically in exactly the same manner 

 two in the middle, forming the bottom of the 

 queen's seat, and three on either side, at a higher 

 level, forming its sides, as shown in the diagram 

 (Fig. 28). 



The queens are very fond of white dead-nettle : 

 this is one of the few species I have seen visiting 

 the flowers of the ground ivy, Nepeta glechoma. 



