XXIV INSECT A : HYMENOPTERA 387 



together, and finally they are covered by a continuous layer 

 of "mortar," which hides and protects them. In C. muraria, 

 one of the commonest species, the dome-shaped " nest," when 

 finished, is about as large as half an orange. No species of 

 this genus is known in Britain. 



These solitary bees are a fascinating study, and a most 

 delightful account of them, as well as of solitary wasps and 

 many other insects, is given by J. H. Fabre in his well- 

 known Souvenirs entomologiques, parts of which have now been 

 translated into English.^ 



Tlie last three genera mentioned — Megachile, Osmia, and 

 Chalicodoma — are all alike in carrying pollen attached to the 

 hairs on the under side of the abdomen. 



Classification of Apidae mentioned in Chapter XXIV. 



Family. Apidae. 



Sub-family 1. Sociales. Long-tongued forms living in com- 

 munities. 



Apis mellifica, the Honey Bee. 



Bomhus terrestris, the Common Earth 



Humble Bee. 

 Bomhus agrorum, the Moss-carding Bee. 

 Suli-faiiiily 2. Andrenidae. Short-tongued, solitary bees, each 

 individual witha separate burrow, but gregarious 

 to some extent. 



Andrena, the Burrowing Bee. 

 Sub-family 3. Dasygastres. Short-tongued, solitary bees which 

 construct special cells for their young ; pollen 

 is carried on the hairs on the under side of 

 the abdomen. 



Megachile, the Leaf-cutting Bee. 

 Osmia. 



Ghalicodoma, the Mason Bee (no British 

 species). 



Practical Notes on Bees 



1. H possible visit an apiary, and get the bee-keeper to show 

 you the hives and to explain to you the care of bees.^ Visit an 



' Insect Life (Macmillan, 1901) ; The Life and Love of the Insect (Black, 

 1911). 



2 See Bees and Bee-keeping, by F. Cheshire. 



