THE GENEALOGY OF THE BEE 5 



this arrangement being the development of 

 a third, or neuter sex. 



It is among the ants that the most wonderful 

 social organisations are found. In their communi- 

 ties there is the most remarkable division of 

 labour, some members being developed as warriors, 

 others for the more domestic operations. The 

 ant communities are permanent, in which respect 

 they are like those of the honey-bee. The wasp 

 colonies are annual, being commenced each year 

 by a solitary female and dying out at the end of 

 the summer. 



The same feature is common to the bumble- 

 bees, which are the nearest relatives to the bee, 

 their common character being the fact that they 

 feed on honey and pollen, whereas the wasps use 

 animal matter, such as flies, to supply the nitro- 

 genous matter needed for their energy. 



The bumble-bees' colonies are not nearly so 

 extensive as those of the hive-bee. Few of them 

 contain more than 200 to 300 individuals in the 

 height of the season, whereas a colony of bees 

 numbers anything from 30,000 to 60,000. 



Moreover, the bumble-bees fall far short of 

 the hive-bee in the matter of constructing their 

 nests. While the bumble-bees do little more 

 than clean out a ready-made hole in the ground 

 and line it with moss, the hive-bee constructs 

 those wonderful hanging combs which have 

 excited the wonder of mankind from time imme- 



