^o6 



Marvels of the Universe 



with her legs the piece which she desires to cut away. Then with her jaws she i-apidly cuts the leaf- 

 tissue, and just as one imagines that she has cut away the last strand of her support and will fall 

 to the ground, she sets her shining wings in motion and darts ofl", carrying the severed piece of leaf 

 tightly gripped beneath her body. 



The marvel is that the bee can arrange so exactly as not to fall when the last attachment is 

 removed. She must " have her wits about her " in a way which human beings (save, perhaps, 

 the most skilful acrobats) can scarcely comprehend, while her nerves and muscles must work 

 together with absolute pi-ecision. Still more wonderful is the manner in which the pieces of leaf 

 are cut, each to a particular shape, with unfailing accuracy. 



The reader must know that each piece of leaf as it is cut is carried to the bee's tunnel and 

 there used to build up a thimble-shaped cell or nursery for a potential bee-grub. The number 

 of leaf-fragments required for the formation of each cell varies somewhat with circumstances, but 

 there are commonh' seven lozenge-shaped and four circular pieces — the former constituting the 



Pholo hiq 



In the centre is the 

 left is the new chrysalis, 



cocoon spun by the full-grown srub. 

 ooking like some carved Chinese ivory. 



THE LEAF-CUTTING BEE. 



Outside the ; 

 To the right i 



yiarohl /Jas/iii. 



lU is coarse, inside it is fine and soft. To the 

 an older chrysalis, which grows darker as the 



nsect nears the perfect state. 



sides and lower end of the cell, the latter the wad or cap with which it is closed. The reader will 

 appreciate this description after glancing at the accompanying photographs. The remarkable 

 point about the whole business, however, is the fact that not one of the leaf-fragments exactly 

 resembles another in shape. Each is cut specially by the bee to cover a particular area as the work 

 proceeds. How does she accomplish this amazing feat ? The parts of her mouth and legs are 

 equivalent to a box of useful tools, but she has nothing that can be compared to a two-foot rule or a 

 pair of compasses ; certainly she has no notebook in which to record figures. We are left to assume 

 that she carries her measurements " in her eye," as the phrase goes, on each occasion that she leaves 

 her burrow and visits the rose-bush. Certain it is that she brings home just the right-shaped piece 

 of leaf each time and never evinces a sign of doubt or confusion. 



As soon as the Leaf-cutting Bee has completed the thimble-shaped portion of a given cell she 

 changes her trade for the third time. We have admired her successively in the callings of carpenter 

 and pattern-cutter. She now becomes a cook — and a very skilful cook, too, for she concocts a 

 dish which is at once appetizing, nourishing, and perfectly adjusted in quality to the requirement 

 of the eater. She gathers nectar and pollen from flowers, pours these ingredients into her thimble- 



