9 
regarding the occurrence of honey-bees and other flower-frequenting 
insects, with regard to their influence on the pollination of coffee. 
Incidentally, of course, collections of economic and other insects were 
made and various interesting habits, ete., noted, but this report is not 
the place for such details. As the conditions are rather different the 
Bababudin hills and Coorg may be considered separately. 
The Bababudin Hills. 
“ Three species of true honey-bee occur here— 
(i) The large rock hee (Apis dorsata). 
(ii) The Indian bee (dds indica). 
(iii) The small bee (Apis florea). 
“ The large rock bee builds regularly at a height of about 5,800 feet 
ou the eastern face of the hills, recourse being had to one particular 
vertical cliff where there is a fair amount of shelter by overhanging 
rocks. This colony is not a large one, comprising perhaps thirty to 
forty combs on the average. 
| Fairly definite evidence was obtainable that these bees desert their 
‘sombs on the onset of the south-west monsoon (about June) and return 
again with the north-east monsoon (November-December). Beyond the 
general upinion that they fly off in an easterly direction no information 
was obtained regarding the locality in which they spend the intervening 
period. Possibly it 1s somewhere in the vicinity of Kadur. The 
swarms which return to the hills at the end of the year seem to be 
small ones and perhaps the number of individuals on a comb is 
greatest at the end of the hot weather (April-May). Neither honey 
nor wax appears to be collected systematically whilst the bees are in 
the hills. The cliff on which they build is situated well above the 
limits of the coffee estates on this side of the hills and the bees, so far 
as I could ascertain, are not interfered with at all. The reason for their 
migration from the hills in June is probably to be found in climatic 
causes, the excessive rain in the hills during the south-west monsoon 
hindering them from foraging for food. 
«The Indian bee occurs fairly commonly, building asa rule in 
hollow trees. It is noteworthy that in these hills the local race of this 
bee is much darker than in the plains and this seems to be the case 
generally in the montane districts of Southern India. The nests are 
robhed when found and swarms are sometimes taken and kept in 
earthen pots although I only heard of one case of even this simple form 
of apiculture. 
“The small bee was not common at the time of my visit and I was 
only able to find one small colony, Possibly it migrates in the same 
way as the rock bee. This bee is regarded as stingless by the local 
inhabitants and the nests are commonly robbed for the honey which is 
usually squeezed out and eaten on the spot. 
“In addition to the true honey-bees, mention may be made of 
a large tawny-yellow carpenter bee (Xylocopu rufescens) which was 
found fairly commonly at flowers after dark. None were to be seenin 
the day time but they began to appear in the evening after sunset and 
flew freely around flowers long after night had fallen. This habit 
on the part of a bee was quite new to me but, on looking up the 
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