INSTINCT 373 



Hence we may safely conclude that, if we could 

 slightly modify the instincts already possessed by the 

 Melipona, and in themselves not very wonderful, this 

 bee would make a structure as wonderfully perfect as 

 that of the hive-bee. We must suppose the Melipona to 

 have the power of forming her cells truly spherical, and 

 of equal sizes; and this would not be very surprising, 

 seeing that she already does so to a certain extent, and 

 seeing what perfectly cylindrical burrows many insects 

 make in wood, apparently by turning round on a fixed 

 point. We must suppose the Melipona to arrange her 

 cells in level layers, as she already does her cylindrical 

 cells; and we must further suppose, and this is the 

 greatest difficulty, that she can somehow judge accurately 

 at what distance to stand from her fellow-laborers when 

 several are making their spheres; but she is already so 

 far enabled to judge of distance that she always describes 

 her spheres so as to intersect to a certain extent; and 

 then she unites the points of intersection by perfectly 

 flat surfaces. By such modifications of instincts which in 

 themselves are not very wonderful — hardly more wonder- 

 ful than those which guide a bird to make its nest — I 

 believe that the hive-bee has acquired, through natural 

 selection, her inimitable architectural powers. 



But this theory can be tested by experiment. Follow- 

 ing the example of Mr. Tegetmeier, I separated two 

 combs, and put between them a long, thick, rectangular 

 strip of wax: the bees instantly began to excavate minute 

 circular pits in it; and as they deepened these little pits, 

 they made them wider and wider until they were con- 

 verted into shallow basins, appearing to the eye perfectly 

 true or parts of a sphere, and of about the diameter of a 



