§X.] BEE ENEMIES. 321 



There are some birds that are given to preying around 

 beehives, and if their visits become too systematically 

 troublesome, it may be worth while to take active mea- 

 sures for making their presence scarce in order to pre- 

 vent these devourers from taking up a position near the 

 alighting-board and pouncing upon each bee as it makes its 

 exit. The toad is a less formidable enemy, but if one of 

 these creatures is found beneath a hive-stand it may fairly 

 be concluded that he is on the watch for such bees as may 

 drop to the ground under their loads. Mice, again, will 

 make their abode in a hive for the winter, and devour the 

 stores when the bees are too inactive to interfere. Spiders, 

 ants, and other insects will also have to be guarded against. 



Other formidable enemies of bees are moths. These 

 insects are creatures of the night, as the wasps are of the 

 day, and they make their way into the hives under cover 

 of darkness, in spite of the bee sentinels. They deposit 

 their eggs in any crevices in or near the hive that t'hey 

 can find. There the warmth of the hive, or of the shel- 

 tered situation, causes the eggs speedily to hatch, and 

 then the maggots soon work their way to the comb and 

 larvae food, which they greedily devour, thereby often 

 bringing about the gradual but certain destruction of the 

 whole community of bees. The best method of keeping 

 moths outside the hives is to lessen the entrance, as 

 before alluded to. Also, in the early spring, the hives 

 should be lifted from their floor-boards, which must then 

 be made thoroughly clean ; and all crevices and corners 



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