124 GENERAL BIOLOGY 



lens or low power, and make drawings to show the points 

 observed. 



5. The Sting. The sting is located in a cavity in the end 

 of the abdomen, which is formed by an infolding of some 

 of the posterior abdominal segments. The sting is homol- 

 ogous with the ovipositor of other insects. 



Remove the dorsal wall of the end of the abdomen and 

 dissect out the sting apparatus. Mount this on a slide in 

 glycerin and study with low power. There is a shaft com- 

 posed of a dorsal sheath and two barbed lancets or darts. 

 The sheath and lancets form a hollow tube through which 

 the poison flows. At the sides is a pair of sting palps, soft 

 whitish projections, which serve as sense organs by which 

 the bee can tell when she is in contact with the object which 

 is to be stung. When the sting apparatus is removed one 

 or both of the poison glands will usually be present. Other 

 parts of the complicated apparatus will also be found. 

 Determine the character of the sting proper and the palps, 

 and make a drawing to show the structures observed. 



As a portion of this study the different classes of the com- 

 munity, drones (males), queens (females), and workers 

 (neuters or imperfect females), should be compared. Es- 

 pecially should this comparison be made to determine the 

 differences in structure which are correlated with the speciali- 

 zations of parts for particular functions. 



Field studies should be made, if possible, to observe the 

 habits of the bees, especially that of gathering nectar and 

 pollen. An interesting study of the activities within the 

 hive can be made if an observation hive of glass is available. 



