26 



PHrSIOLOGY OF THE HONEY-BEE. 



Avings. Thus united, they present to the air a stronger sur- 

 face and give the bees a greater power of flight. No doubt, a 

 single pair of wings of the same surface would have better 

 attained the desired aim, but their width would have annoyed 

 the bees in going inside of the cells, either to feed the larvae 

 ■or to deposit supplies. Imagine a blue fiy trying, with its 

 ■wide wings, to go inside of a cell ! 



WINGS OF THE HONEY BEE. 



(Mp.gnified. From Cheshire.) 



A, anterior wing, under '^ide ■ p^p_, plait. 



B, posterior wing, under side; /i,/j. hoolilets. 



C, cross-section of wings through line, ajb, showing hoolclets in plait. 



61. "Mr. Gauriehon has noticed that when the bees fan, 

 •or ventilate the entrance of the hive, their wings are nut 

 hooked together as they are in flight, but act independently 

 of one another." (Dubini, IRSl.) A German entomologist, 

 Landdis, states that, according to the pitch of their hum, the 

 bees' flight must at limes be equal to 440 vibrations in a sec- 

 ond, but he noticed that this speed could not be kept up with- 

 out fatigue. It is well known that the more rapid the viljra- 

 tions, the higher the pitch. 



63. DiCESTiN'fi AppARATrs. — The honey obtained from the 

 l)lossoms, after mixing with the saliva (41), and passing 



