94 



THE beb-keeper's guide ; 



{Fig. 38, J', b) called the spermatheca,' which receives the male 

 fluid in copulation, and which, by extruding- its contents, must 

 ever after do the work of impregnation. 



This sac was discovered, and its use suggested, by Mal- 



FiG. 38. 



Female Organs, magnified, front Leuckart. 



Ovaries. 

 DD Oviducts. 

 fSb Spermatheca. 

 T'b Poison sac. 



!*(/ Poison glands. 

 Sg Sting glands. 

 ,S' Sting. 



pighi as early as 1686, but its function was not fully demon- 

 strated until 1792, when the great anatomist, John Hunter, 

 showed that in copulation this was filled. The ovaries are 

 ^nultitubular organs. In some insects, as laying' workers, 



