BEE 



pafte deftincJ iar food ; the queens, on the contrary, are 

 more liberally ("upportcd ; tlicy arc clierilhcd with the iilnioll 

 care, and ibi-ir growth is promoted by every nitariS poflible. 

 There arc fonietimcs ftvcral worms, or at any rate two or 

 tliree reared in every comb for q;'.'-ens ; and for the recep- 

 tion of which, if the royal chambers had not been before 

 conllrufted, feveral common cells are broken down to effeA 

 an enlargement fuitable for the purpofe. Tliefe larvo; aie 

 fupplied wiih what is called by f )me t!ie royal jelly, the 

 powtrfu! properties of which arc fometimcs obferved to ope- 

 rate on the larvse of the common workers ; for when it hap- 

 pens (hat the eggs and worms of fuch, contained within the 

 cells adjacent to the royal chambers, receive by aceidei.t a 

 qiianlity of this jelly, we are told they produce prolific 

 working bees, althongh fnch are very rarely obferved ; but 

 tlie reafon of wiiieh is obvious : the queen bees are no foon- 

 cr hatched than they attack thefe prcilific workers without 

 mercy, and deftroy t,hcm. The fame fate, as is well known, 

 attends all the queen bees, with the exception of the queen 

 bee elecl, who mull fupport her claim in the firll inftaiice 

 by conquering and dcihoying her rivals, who would afpiie 

 to the fame honours. 



There have been many very ftrange conceits indulged re- 

 fpectmg the impregnation of the eggs of bees by the drones, 

 or male bees. An;ong th.e ancients, as well as the moderns, 

 it was, and is itiU believed, that tlie eggs are fecundated 

 like thofe of fiihes by the males diffufuig a prolific fluid 

 over them, correfponding with the milt in the finny tribe. 

 Butler, Swammerdam, Maraldi, 5cc. carried matters to a 

 much higher pitch of extravagance ; they imagined even 

 that it was fufficient for the female to be for fome fliort time 

 in the company of the males to become fruitful, conceiving 

 that the fumes flie would imbibe from them would vivify the 

 eggs within her womb, Reaumur thought he difcovered the 

 union of the drone with the female, as in moll other ani- 

 mals ; his obfervations are not however completely fatisfac- 

 tory on this head, although his conjefture has received at 

 length the fanetion of indubitable authority. The difeove- 

 ries of Huber prove him to have been in the right. Huber, 

 diffenting from the abfurd conceptions of fome preceding 

 writers, aflirms that the intimate alhilance of the male is re- 

 quired in this affair. He tells us, that the eggs are impreg- 

 nated by tiic male, while in the ovaria of the female bees ; 

 and gives as a reafon why this connexion of the fexes has not 

 been obferved before, that it never takes place within the hive. 

 Forthis purpofe, the bees refort into the fields, firft the female 

 cfcapes from the hive upon a certain fignal, and the fwarm 

 ^ immediately follows. If in the firll flight the female 

 be not impregnated by fome one of the male attendants, ftie 

 returns to the hive, and takes a feeond flight precifely in the 

 fame manner, but does not afterwards return without being 

 fecundated. Huber fuppofes that this fingle confumniation 

 of its defire is fufficient to vivify all the eggs fhe may lay for 

 the fpace of two years after, or even of thofe laid by her 

 during life, which mull amount to many millions, fince flie 

 lays four or five thoufaml at once, or even ten thoufand in a 

 month. But the male, who contributes his alfillauce to give 

 life to this numerous brood, has never the plenfure of feeing 

 his pofterity, for he dies in the accomplilhinent of the duty 

 impofed on him by nature; the fexiuil organs remaining too 

 firmly fixed in the body of the female to be withdrawn, he 

 is deprived of them in his fepaiation from her, and left 

 to periih milerably. 



One of the moll perfuafive arguments in favour of Hu- 

 ber's idea refpefting the working-bees being originally of 

 the female fex, and not neuters, as is almoll univerfally hx- 

 lieved, may be drawn from the recent difcovery of Mr. 



7 



BEE 



Kirby> who found that the antenna: in both the fe:;iale and 

 the neuter contain the fame number of joints. While we 

 tacitly admitted the afiertion of Linnaeus, that there were 

 no lefs than five articulations more in the antennx of the 

 neuter than the female bee, it required no fmall fhare of 

 credulity to bclieva that fuch an aftonifliing difference in the 

 formation of thefe organs could be produced by the mere 

 effect of feeding the creature inider the larva form in one 

 particular manner inftead of anolh.er ; but this niiftakc being 

 afcertained, removes one difficulty moil certainly, namely, tl e 

 impolTibilily of the working bee having been transformed 

 into a q\ieen, if it does not go very far to prove the fait it- 

 felf. There are, it mull be owned, however, fome other 

 objeClions of a fmular nature, which dill remain to be re- 

 moved. Mr. Kirby, than whom we know no firmer advo- 

 cate for the opinion of the working bees being llrid'y neu- 

 tral from their origin, does not appejr to liave been aware, 

 when he eorredlcd this nuilatcment of I.inr.xus, that his re- 

 mark would tend, in o:.e material point, to fupport an idea 

 fo contrary to that which he entertains himfclf in this 

 refpeft. 



Mr. Wildman, who, from his conflant habit of rearing 

 bees, was pcrfedlly converfant with their attachment to the 

 female, or queen bee, relates one curious particular ; the 

 manner in which he cotdd caufe a fwarm of bees to follow 

 him, and alight in my particular fpot he might think pro- 

 per. " Long experience," fays this writer, " has taught me, 

 that as foou as I turn up the hive, and give it fome taps on the 

 fides and bottom, the queen immediately appears to know the 

 caufe of this alarm, but foon retires again am.onghcr people. 

 Being aceullomed to fee her fo often, I readily perceive her' 

 at firll glance ; and long pradtice has enabled me to feize her 

 inftantly with a tendernefs that does not in the leaft endanger 

 herperfon : this is of the utmoil importance; for the leall in- 

 jury done to her brings imtnediate deftrudtion to the hive, if 

 you have not a fpare queen to put in her place, as I have too 

 often experienced in my firll attempts. When poffefied of 

 her, I can, without iniury to her, or exciting that degree 

 of refentment that may tempt her to fling me, flip her into 

 my other hand, and returniiig the hive to its place, hold her 

 there, till the bees, m.ifTing her, are all on wing, and in the 

 utmotl confufion. When the bees are thus dillreifed, 1 

 place the queen wherever I would have the bees to fettle. 

 The moment a few of them difcover her, they give no- 

 tice to thofe near them, and thofe to the red ; the know- 

 ledge of which foon becomes fo general, that in a few 

 minutes they all colleft theaifelves round her, and are fo 

 happv in having recovered this fole fupport of their date, that 

 they will long remain quiet in their fituation. Nav, the 

 fccnt of her body is fo attraftive to them, that the flighted 

 touch of her along any place or fnbdance, will attach the 

 bees to it, ani induce them "to take any path flie takes." 



Bees, Pnfervaticn of. The prefervation of thefe induf- 

 trious and ufetul creatures deferves every confideration. This 

 depends chiefly on fupplying them with a fuUicient quantity 

 of food, guarding them from their enemies, and defpoiling 

 them of the produce of their hhour without dellroying 

 them. Bcfides the attention which Ihould be beftow^d upo:i 

 the neceffities of bees, in the choice of an eligible fituation 

 for the Apiarv, it may be iicccffary to feed them towards 

 the clofe of autumn, in the winter, or in the fpring, when 

 they have confumed their winter Ihick. This flionid be done, 

 efpce-ially in cloudy, milly weather, when th;y go abroad 

 but little, and when feveral days of bad v/cather immediately 

 follow their fwarming. Mr. Thorley dircfls, that no hive 

 fliould be kept which does not weigh tweuiv pounds ; and 

 that the fupply Hiould be given in quantities of honey, 



which 



