THE CAKDEE BEE. 369 



Humble Bee, to which species it belongs. Eighteen species of 

 Humble Bee exist in this country, and, except in some of the 

 moife prominent species, it is not easy to identify the insects. 

 Varieties in colour and size are almost interminable, especially 

 among the males ; and so striEhg are these varieties, that 



/"Mr. F. Smith did not dare to publish his researches on the . 

 \ ^ { Humble Bees until he had worked for more than twenty i 

 * * \ years at them. The result of his labom-s has been — as is the i 

 result of all true labour — simplification. He has f ound that s. 

 no less tha n seven species described by Kirby are but varieties \ 

 of the Carder Humble Bee, and that six more so-called ^ 

 species are varieties of the Meadow Humble Bee. 



Our first example of these insects is the Carder Bee 

 (Bombus n iuscovurri\ so called on account of the curious 

 manner in which it constructs its nest. One of these insects is 

 represented on Plate XII. Fig. 2, in the act of fl3^ing, and 

 with its tongue extended. Part of the nest itself is seen 

 below, with one of the inhabitants just entering it. 



The colouring and dimensions of this Bee are exceedingly 

 variable, but the following description is that which hao been 

 decided upon by Mr. F. Smith : — The Bee is very hairy, 

 and the general colour of the female is black, with the face 

 covered with dull yellow down. The thorax is orange above, 

 yellow on the sides, and grey beneath. The abdomen is more 

 or less banded with black. The male is less than the female, 

 and has the down on the head of pale yellow, becoming 

 blackish on the crown. The abdomen is yellowish-grey, with 

 several ill-defined dark bands. The worker is often barely 

 half the size of the male, and in colour almost exactly re- 

 sembling the female. 



The h.ibits of this species are very interesting. During thb 

 winter, a number of females or ' queens ' lie torpid, as do those 

 of the wasp an d hornet, in any convenient crevice that they can 

 find, seldom if ever remaining for that pm-pose in the nest 

 which they inhabited. Hollow tree-trunks, haystacks, the thatch 

 of barns and outhouses, and similar localities, are much favoured 

 by these females, the intciitlcd progenitors of future colonies. 



Inthe spring-, tlii- Jjurs recover consciousness, and at once 

 set to work in searching alter fit spots for nest-building. It id 



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