24 



tprgue, overlapping at their edge form a tube, of which only 

 a small portion protrudes. At the same time the bee draws 

 back the basal part of its tongue into the hollow end of the 



PIG. 11 A. 

 Fi^. UA. Hind legs of bees, showing structures for collecttngr pollen, begin- 

 ning from the left, ^airy bee (AiUhopiihDra retusa) four times enlarged. Bum- 

 ble bee (Biimbus t6rres(?is) four times enlarged. Honey hee (ApU melltftca) Ave 

 times enlarged, r trochanter, s femur, t tibia, a prickles on tibia, p tarsus 

 (puUonbrush), f other segments of the foot, k claws. (After Behrens.) 



mentum and so draws the tip of the tongue moist with honey 

 into the tube where the honey is sucked in by the sucking 

 stomach. In flowers with shallow nectaries the bee need not 

 rotate the retractors. The tongue is therefore constantly 

 encased by the laminae and labial palpi. 



When a bee flies from one flower to another it carries the 

 proboscis extended so as to introduce it, in the act of alight- 

 ing, into the tube of the flower. The tongue is, however, 

 concealed within its sheath, to protect the delicate whorls of 

 hairs. Bees also have certain parts specialized for the collec- 

 tion of pollen, yiln some bees this is collected on the lower 

 posterior surface of the body; in others it is collected on the 



