137 



alights upon the leaf, and in a few seconds swiftly runs her 

 scissors-like jaws around through the leaf, bearing off the 

 piece in her hind legs.] About noon she had probably com- 

 pleted the cell, upon which she had been engaged, as, during 

 the afternoon, she was occupied in bringing pollen, preparatory 

 to laying her single egg in the cell. For about twenty days 

 the bee continued at work, building new cells and supplying 

 them with pollen. . . . On the 28th of July, upon removing 

 the board, it was found that the bee had made thirty cells, 

 arranged in nine rows of unequal length, some being slightly 

 curved to adapt them to the space under the board. The 

 longest row contained six cells, and was two and three-quarters 

 inches in length ; the whole leaf-structure being equal to a 

 length of fifteen inches. Upon making an estimate of the 

 pieces of leaf in this structure, it was ascertained that there 

 must have been at least a thousand pieces used. In addition 

 to the labor of making the cells, this bee, unassisted in all her 

 duties, had to collect the requisite amount of pollen (and 

 honey?) for each cell, and lay her eggs therein, when com- 

 pleted. Upon carefully cutting out a portion of one of the 

 cells, a full-grown larva was seen engaged in spinning a slight 

 silken cocoon about the walls of its prison, which were quite 

 hard and smooth on the inside, probably owing to the move- 

 ments of the larva, and the consequent pressing of the sticky 

 particles to the walls. In a short time the opening made was 

 closed over by a very thin silken web. The cells, measured on 

 the inside of the hard walls, were .35 of an inch in length, and 

 .15 in diameter. The natural attitude of the larva is some- 

 what curved in its cell, but if straightened, it just equals the 

 inside length of the cell. On the 31st of July, two female 

 bees came out, having cut their way through the sides of their 

 cells." In three other cells "several hundred minute Ichneu- 

 mons [Anthophorabia megachilis] were seen, which came forth 

 as soon as the cells were opened." (Com. Essex Inst., vol. iv, 

 p. 105, 1864.) 



<Megachile integer Say MS., according to Dr. Harris (MS. 

 notes), forms its nest of leaves the first of August. This spe- 

 cies is twice as large, but closely resembles Megachile brevis of 

 Say. The front of the head is covered with dense ochreous 



