252 THE HUMBLE-BEE 



A FOSTER-MOTHER. 



Searching queens caught and put into com- 

 mencing nests of their own species behaved very 

 variably. A lapidarius or terrestris queen caught 

 early in the season generally took little or no 

 notice of the brood, even if the nest contained 

 workers and was queenless, but moped in the 

 corner, or if she was permitted to fly she disappeared. 

 But queens caught late in the season sometimes 

 took to the brood at once. 



On June 27, 19 10, I caught a searching lapidarius 

 queen and put her in a box with a cluster of cocoons 

 containing pupae from one of my lapidarius nests 

 that had been deserted ; but she tore them open and 

 would not sit on them. 



On July 1, 19 10, I captured a searching lapidarius 

 queen in the apiary and gave her a few cocoons 

 containing larvae. She immediately adopted them 

 and showed great attachment to them, sitting on 

 them almost continuously. 



On the same day, a lapidarius queen occupying 

 one of my domiciles was found in a dazed condition 

 on top of her nest, which had been pulled to pieces 

 and reconstructed by some small mammal, although, 

 and this was strange, her brood which had reached 

 the cocoon stage had not been injured. I brought 

 the poor queen indoors with her brood, but although 

 she drank some honey I offered her, she appeared 

 to be ill, for she paid no attention to her brood but 



