33 Genera of Apidce, 



tate jaws they cut long tunnels, often two or moie feet 

 long, in sound wood. These burrows are partitioned by 

 chips, into cells, and in each cell is left an egg and bee- 

 bread for the larva, soon to hatch. These bees often do 

 no slight damage by boring into cornices, window casings, 

 etc., of houses and outbuildings. At my suggestion many 

 people thus annoyed, have plugged these tunnels with a 

 mixture of lard and kerosene, and have speedily driven the 

 offending bees away. These are the bees which I have 

 discovered piercing the base of long tubular flowers, like 

 the wild bergamot. I have seen honey-bees visiting 

 these slitted flowers, the nectar of which was thus made 

 accessible to them. I have never seen honey-bees biting 

 flowers. I think they never do it. 



The mason-bees — well named — construct cells of earth, 

 which by aid of their spittle they cement so that these cells 

 are very hard. There are several genera of these bees, the 

 elegant Osmia, the brilliant Aiigochlora, the more sober but 

 very numei-ous Andrena — the little black bees that often 

 steal into the hives for honey — etc. Some burrow in sand, 

 some build in hollowed out weeds, some build mud cells in 

 crevices; even small key-holes not being exempt, as I have 

 too good reason to know. The Yale locks in our museum 

 have thus suffered. Here the lard and kerosene mixture 

 again comes in play. 



The tailor, or leaf-cutting bees, of the genus'Megachile, 

 make wonderful cells irom variously shaped pieces of leaves. 

 These are always mathematical in form, usually circular 

 and oblong, are cut — the insect making scissors of its jaws 

 — from various leaves, the rose being a favorite. I have 

 found these cells made almost wholly of the petals or 

 flower leaves of the rose. The cells are made Jjy gluing 

 these leaf-sections in concentric layers, letting them over- 

 lap. The oblong sections form the walls of the cylinder, 

 while the circular pieces are crowded into the tubes as we 

 press circular wads into our shot-guns, and are used at the 

 ends, or for partitions where several cells are placed together. 

 When complete, the single cells are in form and size much 

 like a revolver cartridge. When several are placed together, 

 which is usually the case, they are arranged end to end, and 



