204 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



NEW OBSERVATIONS ON 



THE NATURAL HISTORY 



OF BEES. 



By Francis Hubkk. 



(ContiniUHl from p. 181. \'ol. III.) 



Impressed with this idea, 1 un- 

 dertook a new method of observa- 

 tion, not on queens fortuitously taken 

 from the liive but on females decid- 

 edly in a virgin state, and whose his- 

 tory was known to me from tlie instant 

 of their leaving the cell. From a 

 very great number of hives, I removed 

 all the reigning females and substitu- 

 ted for each a queen taken at the 

 moment of her birth. 



The hives were then divided into 

 two classes. All the males, both large 

 and small, were taken from the first, 

 and 1 adapted a glass tul)e at the en- 

 trance so narrow that no drone could 

 pass, but large enough for the free 

 passage of the common bees. In 

 the hives of the second class I left 

 the whole of the drones belonging to 

 them, and even introduced more ; 

 and to prevent them from escaping, 

 a glass tube, also too narrow for the 

 males, was adapted to their entrance. 



For more than a month, I carefully 

 watched this experiment, made on a 

 large scale, but much to my surprise, 

 every queen remained sterile. Thus 

 it was proved that (jueens confined 

 in a hive would continue barren 

 though amidst a seraglio of males. 

 This result induced me to suspect 

 that the females could not be fecun- 

 dated in the interior of the hives, and 

 that it was necessary for them to leave 

 it for receiving the approaches of the 

 male. To ascertain the fact was easy 

 by a direct experiment ; and as the 

 point is important I shall relate in 

 detail what was done by my secretary, 

 and myself on the 29th of June 

 1788. 



Aware that in summer the males 

 usually leave the hive in the warmest 

 part of the day it was natural for me 



to conclude that if the queens were 

 obliged to go out for tecundalion, 

 instinct would induce them to do so 

 at the same time as the others. At 

 eleven in the forenoon, we placed 

 ourselves opposite a hive containing 

 an unimpregnated queen five days 

 old. The sun had shone from his 

 rising : the air was very warm ; and 

 the males began to leave the hives. 

 We then enlarged the entrance of 

 that selected for observation, and 

 paid great attention to the bees en- 

 tering and departing. The males 

 appeared and immediately took flight. 

 Soon afterwards, the young queen 

 came to the entrance ; at first she 

 did not fly, but during a little time 

 traversed the board, brushing her 

 * belly with her hind legs ; neither 

 workers nor males bestowing any no- 

 tice on her. At last she took flight. 

 When several feet from the hive, she 

 returned, and approached it, as if to 

 examine the place of her departure, 

 perhaps judging this precaution nec- 

 essary to recognize it ; she then flew 

 away, describing horizontal circles 

 twelve or fifteen feet above the earth. 

 We contracted the entrance of the 

 hive that she might not return unob- 

 served and placed ourselves in the 

 centre of the circles described in 

 her flight, the more easily to follow 

 her and witness all her motions. But 

 she did not remain long in a situation 

 favorable for our observations, and 

 rapidly rose oui of sight. We re- 

 sumed our place before the hive ; 

 and in seven minutes the young 

 ([ueen returned to the entrance of a 

 habitation which she had left for the 

 first time. 



Having found no external evidence 

 of fecundation, we allowed her to 

 enter. In a (]uarter of an liour she 

 re-aj^peared ; and after brushing 

 herself as before, took flight. Then 

 returning to examine the hive, she 

 rose so high that we soon lost sight 

 of her. 



\_To be coniiniicd.'] 



