THE WORKER-BEE. 



79 



brood is too old to be used to raise another, and the colony 

 is doomed. That other colonies may not be victims of similar 

 accidents, owing to the scarcity of drones, Nature endows 

 this worthless colony with the faculty of drone-raising. 



It is by the same provision of Nature that unhealthy trees, 

 on the eve of death, are seen covered with blossoms and 

 fruits. They make the strongest efforts to save their race 

 from extinction, and perish afterwards. 



lYS. The drone-laying of worker-bees is easily discovered 

 by the Apiarist. Their eggs are laid without order, some cells 

 containing grown larvae, or sealed pups, by the side of cells 

 containing eggs; while the eggs of a queen are veiy regularly 



Fig. 34. 



BROOD FROM DRONE-LATING WORKER. 



(Forty Years Among the Bees.) 

 By C. C. Miller. 



laid. Huber states that the fertile workers prefer large cells 

 in which to deposit their drone eggs, resorting to small ones 

 only when unable to find those of greater diameter. A hive 

 in our Apiai-y having much worker-comb, but only a small 

 piece of drone size, a fertile worker filled the latter so entirely 

 with eggs that some of the cells contained three or four each. 



