OF THE HUMBLE-BEE. 67 



ground and placed on a tile, covered with a garden-pot, above ground, 

 just at the opening of the passage by which the bees formerly entered, 

 I have observed them to have covered their comb or cell with a sheet 

 of this substance, and I have found that they have removed it again. 



Their nest is always begun by a single female, which was one of the 

 last year's brood, and is inhabited only one season. When the proper 

 place is fixed upon, and the moss or hay (when there is such) is so 

 prepared, as above described, in the centre of which she has formed a 

 small space, or land of cavity, then into this cavity she first makes a 

 large cell or hollow ball, about the size of a nut (some larger), in which 

 she deposits some honey, and often covers it entirely over 1 . This globe 

 is made of wax, and is, I believe, the only wax she forms. It melts by 

 heat, but is commonly softer than the wax of the common bee ; nor is 

 it so white, but appears of a dirty yellow, which I suspect is owing to 

 its being mixed with farina, somewhat similar to what the common bee 

 covers the chrysalis with. This honey would seem to serve the queen 

 as a reservoir or magazine of food, when the weather is too bad for her 

 to go abroad ; as also the first brood of bees, when just emerged from 

 their pod, till they are able to go abroad ; which pods now become 

 reservoirs for honey for the first brood as they come from the chrysalis 

 state. Having formed the hollow globe, she then begins to breed, and 

 one would suppose to form her comb. She first brings in some farina 

 on her hind-legs, similar to the common bees ; but I think she gathers 

 it from a greater variety of flowers, as it is composed of a greater 

 variety of colours and consistence when on her legs. I imagine she 

 mixes it with some juice, for it is more tenacious than simple farina, 

 and is of a dirtier colour. She now deposits it in an irregular square 

 mass a little way from the hollow ball. On this substance she deposits 

 her eggs, one upon another, lying parallel, and then covers the eggs 

 with the same kind of materials, forming a cavity in which they lie. 

 There shall be half a dozen of these eggs or more in this little square. 

 This becomes the basis on which all the future cases are formed. 

 These eggs, so deposited and covered over, hatch, and produce a 

 maggot ; but in what time the egg is hatched after being laid I do 

 not exactly know, but I have reason to believe their progress is pretty 

 quick ; for in those which I have examined at different times, I found 

 that such as had been laid on the day of examination had large 

 maggots on that day fortnight 2 . When hatched, they leave the soft 

 shell of the egg in the cavity in which they are contained. This sur- 

 rounding substance is the food of the maggot, as it is of the common 



1 [Hunt. Prep. No. 3121.] 2 [ Ib . No . 3122.] 



f2 



