150 Chapter IV. 



of food, their whole life and activity have for their 

 object the care of the offspring, and thereby the pres- 

 ervation of the species. The animal colonies of bum- 

 ble-bees, wasps^ and hornets represent a lower stage 

 of community-life, than the perennial colonies of 

 honey-bees, ants and termites. In the case of the 

 former the insect-families and the entire community- 

 life have to be established anew every year by some 

 hibernating female; but with the latter the original 

 families last several years and often much longer, thus 

 giving their community-life a character of stability 

 and also of greater variety and perfection. 



The organic foundation of insect-states, as already 

 shown above (p. 14), is polymorphism, or the separa- 

 tion of the individuals into sexual animals and "neu- 

 ters"^ or workers. The prime duty of the former is 

 generation, this being the direct means for preserving 

 the species, whilst the latter perform all the work 

 required for the welfare of the family, thus in their 

 turn indirectly contributing to the same end. Without 

 this appropriate division of labor insect-states would 

 be impossible; and, as a rule, the more perfect this 

 division, the more perfectly developed is the insect 

 community.^ In bees, with whom the workers are 



1) According to H. v. Jhering ("Zoolog. Anz.," Vol. XIX, 1896, 

 No. 516, p. 449) a large number of the Brazilian social Vespidae 

 (Polybia, Charter gus, etc.) form perennial colonies for several years, 

 not annual ones as our native wasps. 



2) We have already in Chap. I, No. 2, referred to the fact, that in 

 reality they are not, properly speaking, sexless. 



*) The greatest importance must be attached in this place to the 

 differentiation between sexual individuals and workers. Thus e. g. in 

 the annual colonies of bumble-bees there is a dimorphism of workers, 

 and hence a more marked division of labor than in the perennial 

 colonies of our honey-bee. (On the bumble-bees see esp. E. Hoffer's 

 excellent observations on the bumble-bee of Styria). Nevertheless the 

 bee-states are more perfect than those of the bumble-bees on account of 

 the greater difference between their workers and genuine females. 



