LIFE IN THE NEW FOREST 



895 



briuiijs her forehead against the two Httle 

 pollen masses which, if ready for trans- 

 ference, are very sticky at their base, and 

 when she withdraws her head she carries 

 them awa\'. As she chmbs up to the 

 next flower, or round the spike, perhaps 

 from one flower to another, we are able 

 to see the two tiny pollen masses standing 

 upon her forehead. The drying action 

 of the air causes these pollen masses 

 in a very few minutes to 

 bend forward, so that 

 when the bee alights 

 upon another orchid 

 flower and thrusts her 

 head inwards to sip the 

 nectar, the pollen masses 

 have assimied such a 

 position on the insect's 

 head that they come into 

 contact with the viscid 

 surface of the stigma, 

 and, in this way, the 

 pollen is taken by the 

 bee from one flower and 

 transferred to the stigma 

 of another. 



\\'hile watching and 

 photographing the bees 

 at work amongst the 

 orchid blooms in a Forest 

 drive, I observed a most 

 interesting example of 

 protective colouring. A 

 bee had thrust its head into a flower 

 and was busily engaged in sucking up 

 the nectar, when suddenly something, 

 that from a short distance looked like 

 one of the unopened flower buds of the 

 orchid, fell from the top of the flower 

 spike upon the insect's back. The bee 

 gave a shrill buzz of alarm and struggled 

 to free itself from this ap])arent l)ud, 

 which, in reahty, was a spider. The foe 

 was too strong, however, and ha\'ing 

 overcome the bee, carried it down to 

 the base of the flower spike, and under 

 the shelter of the drooping and half- 

 withered blossoms, feasted upon the juices 

 of its victim. 



The spider having finished its meal, 

 dropped the bee. and once more ascending 

 the flower spike, tucked itself away 

 amongst the round uno])ened buds, from 

 which it was practically impossible to 



HUMBLE-BEE VISITING EARLY 

 ORCHID. 



distinguish it, so closely did the shape of 

 its body and its coloration resemble one 

 of the unopened buds. 



The k)rdly Purple Emperor butterfly is 

 fairly common in the Forest, and may be 

 seen flying over the topmost branches of 

 the oak trees. Although such a magni- 

 ficent insect, his tastes are somewhat 

 plebeian, and his habit of frequenting the 

 nearest pig-sty often leads him to disaster, 

 for wliile engaged in feast- 

 ing in this unsavoury 

 spot he falls an easy 

 victim to the ardent en- 

 tomologist. 



In late spring and early 

 summer, as the dusk 

 approaches, the triUing, 

 sibilant note of the Mole 

 Cricket sounds through 

 the Forest glades, particu- 

 larly where a rivulet flows 

 by sandy banks, and if 

 you watch carefully, you 

 may see one of these 

 curious insects come to 

 the surface of the ground 

 and perhaps take flight. 

 The insect has gained its 

 popular name partly from 

 the subterranean life it 

 leads, partly from a 

 curious resemblance of its 

 front pair of legs to the 

 front legs of the mole. The muscular 

 power of these short, broad legs of the 

 Mole Cricket is very great, and it is a 

 most interesting sight to see with what 

 rapidity the insect burrows into the soil 

 when alarmed. 



One of the strangest insect inhabitants 

 of the Forest is the caterpillar of the 

 Lobster Moth {Staiiropis Fagi). It hves, in 

 July and August, on the beech, oak, alder, 

 birch, hazel and lime, and has gained its 

 popular name from the curious shape of the 

 last tw(j segments of its body, which some- 

 what resemble a lobster's claw. These 

 caterpillars are nearly always to be met 

 with singly, and seem to be of a curiously 

 quarrelsome disposition, for should two 

 meet upon a branch, a fight almost always 

 ensues ; while if two caterpillars be kejit 

 in the same cage in confinenient. they will 

 certainly fight and jirobably kill each other. 

 F. M.\RTi\ Din CAN. 



