THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL AND GAZETTE. 



223 



cells with propoMs alone, without altering their 

 form or giving them greater tliiclvness. And 

 it is not less remarkable that, from the instances 

 last cited, it appears that they are not confined 

 to one kind of cement for strengthening and 

 supporting their combs, but avail themselves of 

 propolis, wax, or a mixture of both, as circum- 

 stances direct. 



Not to weary you with examples of the mod- 

 ifications of instinct we are considering, I shall 

 introduce but three more : — the first, of the mode 

 in which bees extend the dimensions of an old 

 comb; the second of that which they adopt in 

 constructing the male cells and connecting them 

 with the smaller cells of workers ; and the last, 

 of the plan pursued by- them when it becomes 

 necessary to bend their combs. 



You must have observed that a comb newly 

 made becomes gradually thinner at its edges, 

 the cells there, on each side, progressively de- 

 creasing in length ; but in time tliese marginal 

 cells, as they are wanted for the purposes of the 

 hive, are elongated to the deptli of the rest. 

 Now suppose bees, from an augmentation of the 

 size of their hive, to have occasion to extend 

 their combs either in length or breadth, the pro- 

 cess which they adopt is this : — they gnaw away 

 the tops of the marginal cells until the combs have 

 resumed their original lenticular form, and then 

 construct upon their edges the pyramidal loz- 

 enge-shaped bottoms of cells, upon which the 

 hexagonal sides are subsequently raised, as in 

 their operation of cell-building. This course of 

 proceeding is invariable : they never extend a 

 comb in any direction whatever without hav- 

 ing first made its edges thinner, diminishing its 

 thi; kness in a proportion sufficiently large to 

 leave no angular projection. Huber observes, 

 and with reason, in relating this surprising law 

 which obliges bees partially to demolish the cells 

 situated upon the edge of the combs, that it de- 

 serves a more close examination than he found 

 himself competent to give it ; for if we may to 

 a certain point form a conception of the instinct 

 which leads these animals to employ their art of 

 building cells, yet how can we cor.ceive of that 

 which in particular circumstances forces them 

 to act in an opposite direction, and determines 

 them to demolish what they have so laboriously 

 constructed V 



Drones or male bees, are more bulky than 

 the workers ; and the cells which bees construct 

 for rearing the larvae of the former are larger 

 than those destined for tlie education of the 

 larvae of the latter. The diameter of the cells 

 of drones is always 3^ lines (or twelfths of an 

 inch), that of "those of workers 2^ lines; and 

 these dimensions are so constant in their ordi- 

 nary cells, that some authors have thought they 

 might be adopted as an universal and invariable 

 scale of measure, which would have the great 

 recommendation of being everywhere at hand, 

 and at all events would be preferable to our 

 harley-corm. Several ranges of male cells, 

 sometimes from thirty to forty, are usually Ibund 

 in each comb, generally situated about the mid- 

 dle. Now as these cells are not isolated, but 

 form a part of the entire comb, corresponding 

 on its two faces — by what art is it that the beel 

 unito hexagonal cells of a small with others of 



a larger diameter, Avithout leaving anj^ void 

 spaces, and without destroying the unilormiiy 

 and regularity of the comb V This problem 

 would puzzle an ordinary artist, but is easily 

 solved by the resources of the instinct of our 

 little workmen. 



When tliej^ are desirous of constructing the 

 cells of males below those of workers, they form 

 several ranges of intermediate or transient cells, 

 of which the diameter augments progressively, 

 until they have reached the range where the 

 male cells commence ; and in the same manner, 

 when thej^ wish to revert to the modelling of 

 the cells of workers, they pass by a gradual de- 

 creasing graduation to the ordinaiy diameter 

 to the cells of this class. We commonly meet 

 with three or four ranges of intermediate cells 

 before coming to those of males ; the first ranges 

 of which participate in some measure in the 

 irregularity of the former. 



But it is upon the construction of the bottuns 

 of the intermediate ranges of cells that this va- 

 riation of their architecture chiefij^ hinges. 

 The bottoms of t-he regular cells of bees are, as 

 you are aware, composed of tliree equal-sized 

 rhomboidal pieces ; and the base of a cell on 

 one side of the comb is composed of portions of 

 the bases of three cells on the other ; but the 

 bottoms ofintermediate cells in question (though 

 their orifices are perfectly hexagonal) are com- 

 posed oi four pieces, of which two are hexag- 

 onal and two rhomboidal ; and each instead of 

 corresponding with three cells on the opposite 

 side corresponds with four. The size and the 

 shape of the lour pieces composing the bottom 

 vary ; and these intermediate cells, a little lar- 

 ger tlian the third part of the three opposite 

 cells, comprise in their contour a portion of the 

 bottom of the fourth cell. Just below t!\e last 

 range of cells with regular pyramidal bottoms 

 are Ibund cells with bottoms of four pieces, of 

 which three are very large, and one very small, 

 and this last is a rhomb. The two rhombs of 

 the transition cells are separated by a cor sider- 

 able interval ; but the two hexagonal pieces 

 are adjacent and perfectly alike. A cell lower, 

 we perceive that the two rhombs of the bottom 

 are not so unequal; the contour of the cell has 

 included a greater portion of the opposite fourth 

 cell. Lastl3% we find cells in pretty consider- 

 able number of which the bottom is composed 

 of ibur pieces perfectly regular — namely, two 

 elongated hexagons and two equal rhombs, but 

 smaller than those of the pj-ramidal bottoms. 

 In proportion as we remove our view from the 

 cells with regular tetrahedral bottoms, whether 

 in descending or from right to left, we see that 

 the subsequent cells resume their ordinary form : 

 that is to say, that one of their rhombs is grad- 

 uallj'^ lessened until it finall}'^ disappears en- 

 tirely ; and the pyramidal form re-exhibits itself, 

 but on a larger scale than in the cells at the top 

 of the comb. This regularity is maintained in 

 a great number of ranges, namely, those consis- 

 ting of male cells ; afterwards the cells dimin- 

 ish in size, and we again remark the tetrahi dral 

 bottoms just described, until the cells have once 

 more resumed the proper diameter of those of 

 workers. 



It is, then, by encroaching in a small degree 



