Reproduction of Insects. 69 



does the female receive from the male a supply of 

 this essential material. Only once does he make 

 the mysterious and fateful transference of his life to 

 her. He gives all in this one act, then is doomed to 

 death, while his germ-cells, nourished in some mys- 

 terious way by the female, live on, sometimes for in- 

 credible lengths of time, — even for years, and she, 

 thus permanently supplied, fertilizes her eggs at will. 



The domestic life of the bees is more or less 

 familiar to every one. With them the queen is 

 the most important member of the community. 

 She is tenderly reared and sumptuously fed, and 

 all her life long guarded and protected. Only once 

 does she depart alone from the hive. The drone is 

 the male bee, stingless and helpless. He, too, 

 leaves the hive — once. Upon the return of the 

 queen from her nuptial flight she is possessed of 

 a store of sperm-cells, which she keeps in a little 

 sac to use at her pleasure. The supply has been 

 known to last for five years. 



Unfertilized eggs develop into drones, those 

 which have been fertilized become either workers 

 or queens. 



The hapless drone, when once his office has 

 been fulfilled is not allowed to return to the nest. 

 He is no longer necessary to the economy of the 

 hive, he is but a tax upon the strength of the 

 workers; ruthlessly they usurp the power which 

 nature exercises in many of the other insects, and 

 put him to death. 



