68 WAYS OF THE SIX-FOOTED 



always the mother of the colony, and the devoted at- 

 tention she receives is due to the fact that without her 

 the community would perish. 



The queen has reached her highest development in 

 the honey-bee, and we will study her there. From in- 

 fancy she is destined to maternity, and her life-history 

 is briefly as follows : When the workers wish to develop 

 a queen they tear down the partitions between three 

 adjacent cells containing eggs which would naturally 

 develop into workers. They destroy two of the eggs, 

 reserving the third as occupant of the large cell which 

 they proceed to build over it. The egg hatches into a 

 little white bee grub, in no wise differing from those in 

 the neighboring cells. But soon the process of differ- 

 entiation begins, for this grub is fed upon a highly 

 nutritious food, made by the workers, called " royal 

 jelly." Not for the delectation of the babe in the royal 

 cell is she fed royal jelly, but because this rich diet has 

 a marvellous effect upon her physical development, giving 

 her great capabilities for producing eggs. For five days 

 she is fed upon this stimulating food, and then the work- 

 ers cap her cell and leave her alone to change to a pupa. 



About sixteen days from the date of hatching, the 

 queen is ready to come out of her cell ; the workers 

 know this and are ready to open the cell and help the 

 royal lady out, now in full possession of her legs and 



