WASPS AND BEES 89 



her life to an end and with it all hope of the 

 future wasps' nest. 



Finally, the unique method 'of the fertilisation 

 of the queen-bee by the drone differs from any- 

 thing which takes place in a wasp. The fertilisa- 

 tion of the bee occurs high up in the air, and the 

 male instantly dies and falls to earth, leaving, 

 however, part of his body in the queen bee. 

 Such a process is unknown in any other insect, 

 even in the nearly allied humble-bee. There 

 is no instance on record of a queen-bee being 

 fertilised twice, and should she fail to find a mate 

 she lays unfertilised eggs, which produce only 

 drones. This means in a short time the end of 

 the hive, for drones are useless, and the workers 

 soon die off and the starvation of the brood 

 ensues. It is a mystery why female egg cells 

 not fertilised by the male cell (spermatozoon) 

 should always produce a male, and that the same 

 when united with the male cell should produce 

 a female, but such is the case with other insects. 



