Insect Study 445 



THE HONEY-BEE 



Teacher's Story 

 URING many years naturalists have been study- 

 ing the habits and adaptations of the honey- 

 bees, and, as yet, the story of their wonderful 

 ways is not half told. Although we know fairly 

 well what the bees do, yet we have no inkling of 

 the processes which lead to a perfect govern- 

 ment and management of the bee community; 

 and even the beginner may discover things 

 never known before about these fascinating 

 little workers. In beginning this work it might 

 be well to ask the pupils if they have ever heard of a republic that has 

 many kings and only one queen; and where the citizens do all the 

 governing without voting, and where the kings are powerless and the 

 queen works as hard and longer than any of her subjects; and then tell 

 them that the pages of history contain no account of a republic so wonder- 

 ful as this; yet the nearest beehive is the home of just this sort of 

 government. 



In addition to the interest of the bee colony from a nature-study stand- 

 point, it is well to get the children interested in bee-keeping as a commer- 

 cial enterprise. A small apiary well managed may bring in an acceptable 

 income ; and it should be the source of a regular revenue to the boys and 

 girls of the farm, for one hive should net the young bee-keeper from three 

 to five dollars per year and prove a business education to him in the mean- 

 time. 



Bees are perfect socialists. They have non-competitive labor, united 

 capital, communal habitations and unity of interests. The bee commune 

 is composed of castes as immutable as those of the Brahmins, but these 

 castes exist for the benefit of the whole society instead of for the individ- 

 uals belonging to them. These castes we have named queens, drones and 

 workers, and perhaps, first of all, we should study the physical adaptations 

 of the members of these castes for their special work in the community. 



The Worker (p. 446, Fig. 3.) 



There are three divisions to the body of the bee, as in all insects — head, 

 thorax and abdomen. The head bears the eyes, antennas and mouth- 

 parts, (p. 448, W.) There are two large compound eyes on either side 

 of the head and three simple eyes between them. The antennae arise from 

 the face, each consisting of two parts, one straight segment at the base, 

 and the end portion which is curved and made up of many segments. 

 There is also a short, bead-like segment where the antenna joins the face. 

 A lens is needed to see the jaws of the bee, folded across, much like a pair of 

 hooks, and below them the tongue, which is a sucking tube ; the length of 

 the tongue is very important , for upon this depends the ability of the bee to 

 get nectar from the flowers. 



The thorax bears three pairs of legs below and two pairs of wings 

 above. Each leg consists of six segments, and the foot or tarsus has four 

 segments and a pair of claws. The front leg has an antennae comb between 

 the tibia and tarsus, (p. 447, F, a,) the hind leg has a pollen basket, which 

 is a long cavity bordered by hairs wherein the pollen is packed and carried 

 (p. 447, A, pb.) On the other side of the large joint beyond the pollen 



