The Primary Larva of the Sitares 



From the moment of their hatching they are 

 doomed, although full of life, to an absolute 

 abstinence of seven months' duration; and it 

 is natural to suppose, when we see their pre- 

 sent excitement, that an imperious hunger sets 

 them bustling in this fashion. 



The desired nourishment could only be the 

 contents of the cells of the Anthophora, since 

 we afterwards find the Sitares in these cells. 

 Now these contents are limited to honey or 

 larvae. It just happens that I have kept 

 some Anthophora-cells occupied by larvae or 

 nymphs. I place a few of these, some open, 

 some closed, within reach of the young 

 Sitares, as I had already done directly after 

 the hatching. I even slip the Sitares into the 

 cells : I place them on the sides of the larva, 

 a succulent morsel to all appearances; I do 

 all sorts of things to tempt their appetite; 

 and, after exhausting my ingenuity, which 

 continues fruitless, I remain convinced that 

 my famished grubs are seeking neither the 

 larvae nor nymphs of the Anthophora. 



Let us now try honey. We must obviously 

 employ honey prepared by the same species 

 of Anthophora as that at whose cost the 

 Sitares live. But this Bee is not very com- 

 mon in the neighbourhood of Avignon; and 

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