198 ORDER V. Apis. 



noife they make in their flight, as to render it 

 difficult to determine where the firft family of 

 Linnaeus fhall end, or the other commence, 

 has therefore preferred to divide them into 

 families, from the form of their antenna?, 

 which in fome are whole and extended, in others 

 bent, and forming an angle from their bafe ; 

 this divifion feems liable to fewer inconve- 

 niencies than that of Linnaeus, though it 

 frequently connects Bees which differ much in 

 their outward appearance. 



Geoffroy obferves that the under wings of 

 the Bees are fhorter than the upper ones ; that 

 the firft articulation of their antennae in each 

 fex, is much longer than the others ; that the 

 abdomen isjoin'd to the thorax by a fhort pe- 

 dicle, and that they have three ftemmata. He 

 has divided them into families for the fame cir- 

 cumftances as Linnaeus. 



The tarfi in this Genus are compofed of four 

 articulations. 



The Bee is too well known to be eafily 

 confounded with any other Genus of In- 

 fefts. The female of the domeftic Bee is 

 much larger than the male or neuter ; her an- 

 tennae contain fifteen articulations ; her abdomen 

 is compofed of feven fegments,and is much longer 



3 than 



