Insects. 9265 
pale brown; the fore wings from the anterior margin to the externo- 
medial nervure, and including the marginal and submarginal cells, are 
a decided yellowish brown, which is also the colour of the neryures in 
all four wings. The apices of the anterior wings are smoke-coloured, 
and more or less those of the hinder wings also. 
The legs are ferruginous as far as the tarsi, which are yellowish red. 
Coxe, apophyses and femora are marked with black longitudinal 
lines ; the legs are very hairy, as far as the first joint of the tarsi. In 
the male the coxe and femora, more especially those of the second 
and last pair of legs, are much coarser, longer and thicker than in the 
female ; and in the former, on the posterior border of the intermediate 
cox, is found a hatchet-shaped projection ending in a little blunt 
spine below. 
The abdomen is yellow. The first, second and fourth segments are 
black on the dorsum; the first segment is curved in a forward direction 
on the posterior margin, and, as it were, cut out, so that a space is left 
between it and the following one; this space is filled ‘up by a clear 
white membrane, which may be seen to be frequently moved up and 
down by the breathing of the animal. In the centre of the dorsum of 
the third, fifth, sixth and seventh segments is a small black triangle, 
bordered with brown: in the female this occurs on the eighth segment 
also. On the under side of the abdomen, which is yellow, the middle 
segments have little black lines, while the organs of generation are 
concealed by a broad ferruginous plate on the last segment. The 
valves of the saw in the females are yellow, with two little black 
lines. 
My two examples were not very lively, and soon died: I was not 
able to discover the nature of their food. 
The body, exclusive of the antenne or the legs, was 16 mm. long; 
the male with his legs covered a circle of three centimetres diameter. 
The female expanded to 37 mm., the male to 40 mm. 
Hexagonal Form of the Cells of Bees —When will this controversy come to an end? 
In former numbers of the ‘ Zoologist’ the subject was canvassed very often, and if 
any apiarian will only examine those honey-combs so frequently left in wet, cold 
sumuers, before the cells are filled,—in fact, in deserted hives or deserted combs, 
where no heat or pressure has been able to act on them, —that person must be obdurate 
to doubt for a moment that the hive bees’ cells are originally all formed (except the 
queens’ and drones’ cells) of the hexagonal form exactly. But I have no doubt that 
in many old stocks which have stood a very hot summer, and in which breeding has 
been going on, or which have been moved in a very heavy state, that the hexagonal 
VOL. XXII, 3 F 
