18 PHYSIOLOGY OF THE IIONET-BEE. 



also to dilute the honey when too thick, to moisten the 

 (263) pollen grains, to wash the hairs when daubed with 



honey, etc. 



These glands yield their saliva while the tongue of the 

 bees is stretched out; but the upper glands (No. l,flg. 6), 

 which open on both sides of the pharynx or mouth {ph), can 

 yield their product only when the tongue is bent backwards, 

 to help feed the larva (64) lying at the bottom of the cell. 



42. The mouth of the bee has mandibles or outer jaws, 

 which move sidewise, like those of ants and other insects, 

 instead of up and down as in higher animals. These jaws 

 are short, thick, without teeth, and beveled inside so as to 

 form a hollow when joined together, as two spoons would do. 

 With them, they manipulate the wax to build their comb, 

 open the anthers of flowers to get the honey, and seize and 

 hold, to drag them out, robbers or intruders, or debris of 

 any kind. 



43. Fig. 9 shows the jaws of the Mexican hornet highly 

 magnified. Fig. 10 shows the jaws of the honey-bee, highly 

 magnifled. Notice the difference in the shape of the two, 

 the saw-like appearance of the one, and the spatula shape 

 of the other. A glance at these figures is enough to con- 

 vince any intelhgent horticulturist of the truth of Aristotle's 

 remark — made more than two thousand years ago — that 

 " bees hurt no kinds of sound fruit, but wasps and hornets 

 are very destructive to them." 



