IX. 



MY INSECT VISITORS. 



I listen to the humming of the bum- 

 ble-bees, I think the term " bombina- 

 tion," formerly applied to the droning 

 of the large Bombus, should be retained. It is 

 expressive, and carries the sound shed by him of 

 the black -velvet coat and winnowing wings. 

 Sir John Lubbock's experiments with regard to 

 the color-sense of bees are interesting as de- 

 tailed in Chapter X in the volume " Ants, Bees, 

 and Wasps." Repeated experiments made with 

 honey placed on papers of different colors not 

 only indicated a liking for blue on the part of 

 bees, but showed a very decided preference for 

 this over all other colors. Since the researches 

 of Lubbock, Darwin, Wallace, and Miiller, it is 

 now well known that special colors in flowers 

 are definitely designed to attract certain special 

 kinds of insects ; as, for instance, flowers that 



