CONSIDERATIONS FROM STUDY OF INSECTS 255 



about two weeks of quiescence in the pupal state, the adult worker 

 breaks out of the cell and takes her place in the hive, first caring for 

 the young as a nurse, later making excursions to the open air after 

 food as an adult worker. 



If new queens are to be produced, several of the cell walls are 

 broken down by the workers, making a large ovoid cell in which 

 one egg develops. The young bee in this cell is fed during its whole 

 larval life upon bee jelly, and grows to a much larger size than an 

 ordinary worker. When a young queen appears, great excitement 

 pervades the community ; the bees appear to take sides ; some re- 

 main with the young queen in the hive, while others follow the old 

 queen out into the world. Here they usually settle around the 

 queen, often hanging to the limb of a tree. This is called swarming. 

 This instinct is of vital importance to the bees, as it provides them 

 with a means of forming a new colony. For while the bees are 

 swarming, certain of the workers, acting as scouts, determine on a 

 site for their new home ; and, if undisturbed, the bees soon go there 

 and construct their new hive. A swarm of domesticated bees, 

 however, may be quickly hived in new quarters. 



We have already seen (pages 42 and 43) that the honeybee 

 gathers nectar, which she swallows, keeping the fluid in her crop 

 until her return to the hive. Here it is regurgitated into cells of 

 the comb. It is now thinner than what we call honey. To thicken 

 it, the bees swarm over the open cells, moving their wings very 

 rapidly, thus evaporating some of the water in the honey. A hive 

 of bees have been known to make over thirty-one pounds of honey 

 in a single day, although the average record is very much less than 

 this. 



Ants. Ants are the most truly communal of all the insects. Their life 

 history and habits are not so well known as those of the bee, but what is 

 known shows even more wonderful specialization. The inhabitants of a 

 nest may consist of wingless workers, which in some cases may be of two 

 kinds, and winged males and females. 



Ant larvae are called grubs. They are absolutely helpless and are 

 taken care of by nurses. The pupae may often be seen taken out in the 

 mouths of the nurse ants for sun and air. They are mistakenly called 

 ants' eggs in this stage. 



The colonies consist of underground galleries with enlarged store- 

 rooms, nurseries, etc. The ants are especially fond of honeydew secreted 



