The Wings 63 



By listening to the tone of the bee's wings, one can soon 

 learn the state of its mind, for the low hum of happy in- 

 dustry is very readily distinguishable from the high-keyed 

 note of fear or anger. 



When in the fields, one can soon learn to know the 

 species of a bee by its hum, before the bee itself has been 

 found by the eye. The low drowsy note of the bumble-bee 

 can be recognized at once, and the sharp, short tone of the 

 small wild bee is easily distinguishable from the pleasant, 

 intermittent note of the honey-bee going from flower to 

 flower, the most agreeable of all bee-voices. 



A sharp listener can even tell whether the sound pro- 

 ceeds from the large or the small bumble-bee, and very 

 likely one with gifted ears could tell, without seeing, just 

 what species of the many wild bees that inhabit our land 

 had crossed his path. 



The voices of the bees are as significant to those who 

 love and listen as are the voices of the birds to the bird- 

 lovers. These voices are only in part dependent upon the 

 wings, however, as it has been ascertained that there is an 

 apparatus in the tubes or tracheae leading from the spira- 

 cles to the air-sacs, which, in a way, simulates our own vocal 

 chords ; and that by forcing the air past these organs the 

 bee can at will produce a humming sound. 



When a bee has lost its wings, or when they have been 

 stuck together so as to be immovable, it can still " speak 

 its mind" in a very shrill outcry. It is probable 

 that the " crying " of bumble-bees caught in a net is due 

 to the action of these vocal organs. Whoever has caught 

 bumble-bees has been amused and even touched at the 

 many-toned outcry they make, as though they were indeed 

 calling for help, or imploring the mercy of their captor. 

 The sound is very distinct from the buzzing made by the 

 wings as the bee flies from flower to flower. 



