290 VARIETIES THE QUEEN DESCRIBED. 



There are VARIETIES of the bee, more, I think, in 

 other countries than in this, where we pay little at- 

 tention to that matter. To the queen, or mother of 

 the whole community, however, it is necessary for 

 the bee-master to give the strictest attention, as, 

 without a queen, it is useless to possess a hive, since 

 neither can the generation of fresh swarms proceed, 

 nor will those which may be present labour, but either 

 emigrate, or languish and die. It being then so ne- 

 cessary to have the distinguishing form and features 

 of a queen familiarly in the eye, I shall give a de-> 

 cription of her, and, for correctness' sake, from Mr. 

 Huish, a most able, practical, and comprehensive 

 writer on the subject. 



The form of the QUEEN is wholly different from 

 that of other bees. Like the drones, she neither 

 has nor needs the triangular store cavities in her 

 hinder thighs: her teeth are smaller than those of 

 the working bee, but larger than those of the drone, 

 and she has no bunches of hair or bristle near her 

 feet ; she is longer in her body, and more tapering 

 than the drone. Her belly is of a golden colour, 

 and the upper part of her is of a brighter hue than 

 that of the common bee. But the most unerring 

 rule to judge of the queen bee is from the shortness 

 of her wings, which extend only to the third ring 

 of her body, whilst those of the working bees, and 

 more particularly those of the drones, cover almost 

 their whole length. Thus she flies with greater 

 difficulty than the working bees ; however, it is 

 mere accident, if in the course of her life she 

 should have any occasion for her wings. She is 



