GleaninKS in Bee Culture 



Fig. 4. — Crop, stomach-mouth, and ventriculus of 

 wasp, enlarged ten times. 



I am able to reproduce a few microscopical 

 l)hotographs wliicli those wlto liave studied 

 the bulletin, No. 18, by R. E. Snodgrass, on 

 the anatomy of the honey-bee, will especial- 

 ly appreciate. 



Fig. 1 is a photo of a microscopical prep- 

 aration of the honey-stomach, the proven- 

 triculus (stomach-mouth), and the true ven- 

 triculus, or chyle-stomach. This prepara- 

 tion clearly shows the natural position of 

 the so-called stomach-mouth with its cross- 

 slits to where the oesophagus discharges in- 

 to the honey-sac A clear conception of the 

 structure of these parts of the elementary 

 canal may be gathered from the sectional 

 view of a model at Erlangen, reproduced in 

 Fig. 2. This illustration shows especially 

 well the way in which the honey-sac is con- 

 nected with the true stomach by means of 

 the neck-like organ, the proventriculus. 



The position these parts assume in the ab- 

 domen of the bee may be seen in Fig. 3. 



Fig. 4 being a microphoto of the crop, the 

 proventriculus, and the ventriculus of a 

 wasp ( Vespa caboa) aflford an interesting 

 comparison with the analogous organs of 

 the honey-bee as reproduced in the same 

 enlargement in Fig. 1. 



A pupil of Prof. Zander, Dr. Metzer, who 

 devoted himself to a study of the proventric- 

 ulus of the honey-bee, brought to light a 

 very interesting fact about the development 



of the honey-sac and the stomach-mouth. 

 While in the full-grown insect these organs 

 occupy their place in the abdomen, their de- 

 velopment ensued almost entirely in the 

 thorax. In the earlier stages of the pupa, 

 both these organs form but slight enlarge- 

 ments of the alimentary tube. Just before 

 the division between thorax and abdomen 

 becomes complete, the honey-sac recedes 

 into the fore part of the abdomen. The 

 drawings in Figs. 5 to 8 will help to make 

 this development clear. 



Another pupil of Prof. Zander made a 

 special study of the construction and mech- 

 anism of the apparattxs of flight. He dis- 

 covered a wonderful apparatus that leaves 

 the complicated mechanism actuating the 

 sting far behind. 



The sting itself received a special study 

 by Prof. Zander, and here, too, the compar- 

 ative study of the analogous apparatus of 

 other members of the hymenoptera furnish- 

 ed interesting and instructive matter; and 



The development of the honey-sac and stomach- 

 mouth in the pupa stage. //, honey-sac: I', pro- 

 ventriculus (stomach-mouth) : Md, ventriculus. 



