232 SIE JOHN LUBBOCK ON BEES, WASPS, AND ANTS. 



close to her ; the prisoner, of course, struggled to escape and 

 buzzed as loudly as she could ; yet the selfish (?) eater took no 

 notice whatever. So far, therefore, from being at all affectionate, 

 I doubt whether bees are in the least fond of one another. 

 ■ Their devotion to their queen is generally quoted as a most 

 characteristic trait ; yet it is of the most limited character. For 

 instance, I was anxious to change my black queen for a Ligurian ; 

 and accordingly on the 26th of October Mr. Hunter was good 

 enough to bring me a Ligurian queen. We removed the old 

 queen, and we placed her with some workers in a box containing 

 some comb. I was obliged to leave home on the following day ; 

 but when I returned on the 30th I found that all the bees had 

 deserted the poor queen, who seemed weak, helpless, and miserable. 

 On the 31st the bees were coming to some honey at one of my 

 windows, and I placed this poor queen close to them. In alight- 

 ing, several of them even touched her ; yet not one of her subjects 

 took the slightest notice of her. The same queen, when afterwards 

 placed in the hive, immediately attracted a number of bees. 



Although the experiments on colour which I have already 

 recorded seem to me tolerably conclusive, still I thought it 

 would be worth while to make a few more. Accordingly, on the 

 12th July I brought a bee to some honey which I placed on blue 

 paper, and about 3 feet off I placed a similar quantity of honey 

 on orange paper. After she had returned twice, I transposed 

 the papers ; but she returned to the honey on the blue paper. 

 ASter she had made three more visits, always to the blue paper, I 

 transposed them again, and she again followed the colour, though 

 the honey was left in the same place. The following day I was 

 not able to watch her ; but on the 14th, at 

 7.29 A.M. she returned to the honey on the blue paper. 7.31 left. 

 7.44 . „ 7.47 „ 



7.56 



I then again transposed the papers. At 8.5 she returned to the 

 old place, and was just going to alight ; but observing the change 

 of colour, without a moment's hesitation, darted off to the blue. 

 No one who saw her at that moment could have entertained any 

 further doubt about her perceiving the difference between the 

 two colours. At 8.9 she went ; 



8.13 she returned to the blue. 8.16 went 



8-20 » „ 8.23 „ 



8-26 „ „ 8.30 „ 



