150 THE LORE OF THE HONEY-BEE 



round this oblong cavity is a fringe of incurving 

 bristles which look as if they would hold anything. 

 But before the pollen can be packed in these 

 baskets it must be collected and kneaded together. 

 Practically the whole body of the bee is used in 

 pollen-gathering. Under the low power of the 

 microscope it is seen that hardly any part of the 

 trunk or limb is without its dense covering of 

 hairs ; but with the high objective these hairs 

 cease to be hairs, and are changed into actual 

 feathers, delicate herring-bone implements, which 

 sweep up the pollen as the bee dives into the 

 flower-cup for the nectar that lies below. 



Nearly every joint of each leg is furnished with 

 a comb of bristles, with which this pollen-dust is 

 scraped off and transferred to the carrying-basket 

 after being moistened by the tongue ; while the 

 hind -legs have each a complete, perfectly-fashioned 

 curry-comb. Here the leg is widened and flat- 

 tened, and covered on one side with nine or ten 

 rows of short, strong spines, with which the bee 

 scrapes her body just as a groom curry-combs a 

 horse. At ordinary times she will carefully pack 

 her load of pollen into its proper receptacles before 

 returning to the hive, so that it shall be all ready 

 for transference to the cells. At the cell-mouth 

 she pushes each lump off by means of her other 

 legs, leaving it to be rammed down into the cell 

 by the store- keepers. No distinction is made 

 here, every kind and colour of pollen being indis- 



