36 THE APIARF. 



The mouth of the bee is a most complex structure, 

 marvellously adapted for its duties, and consists of the 

 mandibles, the ligula, or tongue, also called the pro- 

 boscis, and other less important parts. The mandibles 

 are the two sides of the upper jaw. Plate I., fig. i d, 

 shows the mandible of the queen, which, similar to that 

 of the drone (Plate I., fig. 3 </), is provided with two 

 teeth, whilst the mandible of the worker (Plate I., fig. 2 d) 

 is without teeth. The latter having to manipulate the 

 wax with smoothness, the teeth would doubtless be 

 objectionable. These mandibles are strong, homy, and 

 sharp-pointed, to assist in breaking down food between 

 them, and, in other respects, constitute serviceable tools 

 with which to seize their enemies, destroy the drones, &c. 

 The tongue (Plate II., fig. 3), or proboscis, is a long, 

 slender projection, flattish in form, and about the thick- 

 ness of a bristle. It has about forty cartilaginous rings, 

 each of which is fringed with minute hairs, having also 

 a small tuft of hair at its extremity, where it is somewhat 

 serrated. The tongue acts by rolling about, sweeping 

 or lapping up, by means of the fringes around it, every- 

 thing to which it is applied ; thus, when a bee alights 

 upon a flower, it pierces the petals and stamina, where 

 the nectar is secreted, deposits its collection on the 

 tongue, which, when withdrawn into the mouth, propels 

 the gathered material into the gullet (Plate I., fig. 2 c) at 

 its base, and from thence passes into the various internal 

 organs, to which reference will be made hereafter. At 



