The Bee Louse 5 



sex organs of the female and further states that the gland tubes which 

 serve to furnish food for the developing larvae of species of Pupipara 

 are lacking in Braula. Skaife confirms Miiggenburg in this point. 



The material collected in Carroll County, Md., contained plenty 

 of adult insects, and under cappings of the honey in the brood combs 

 were found eggs, larval skins, and pupae clearly identical with those 

 described by Skaife and in the exact position described by Arnhart. 

 The puparium of Braula is not hard, but consists of the last larval 

 skin un thickened; it is not brownish in color as stated by Assmuss 

 (4). Losy {23, 2J^) states that copulation of Braula occurs on the 

 queenbee. 



GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION 



Braula occurs in France, Italy, Germany (but not in Hanover and 

 Oldenburg, according to a private communication from Dr. H. v. 

 Buttel-Reepen), and in the Baltic region, according to Assmuss (4). 

 It is also recorded in Further Pomerania by Timm (5^), in Mediter- 

 ranean countries by Benton (5), on the island of Cyprus by Cook 

 {12), on the authority of Benton, in South Africa by Skaife {So), in 

 Brazilby DeMiranda-Ribeiro (^7), in the Argentine Republic by Wolff- 

 hiigel (§5), in Austria by Arnhart {2), in Holland (5^), and in 

 Czechoslovakia (Dr. A. Schonfeld in a private communication). 

 It is reported by Assmuss not to occur in northern, middle, or southern 

 Russia, and by Gale (17) as absent from Australia. Cheshire {10) 

 states that it has been introduced into England, but that it rarely 

 survives a winter there. From these records it is evident that the 

 statements which have frequently occurred in American beekeeping 

 literature to the effect that Braula is confined to warm climates are 

 not correct. 



FEEDING HABITS 



The question of first importance regarding Braula is its exact 

 relation to the bees on which it lives, and the best evidence on this 

 point seems to be the information regarding its method of taking 

 food. Frequent statements have been made to the effect that it 

 takes its food by sucking the blood of the bees on which it lives 

 (5, etc.), and it is frequently mentioned as a parasite. Other writers 

 have referred to it as a commensal of the colony, some of them {S5) 

 stating that it lives on honey. The older writers as a rule considered 

 it a true parasite. The tongue of Braula has been carefully described 

 by Losy {2S, 24) and by Massonnat {28), who show that the tongue 

 is incapable of piercing the integument of the bee or even of punc- 

 turing between the chitinous plates of the abdomen. There are no 

 hard stylets on the proboscis, so that it is evident that in taking food 

 Braula must confine its attention to some source other than the blood 

 of the bees. 



The behavior of Braula in feeding has been described by various 

 investigators and the description by Perez {31) is frequently quoted. 

 The original paper has unfortunately not been available to the writer 

 but at least a portion of his results have been translated by Root 

 {31) and are quoted below. 



One day, having captured a bee with one of these lice, I fixed its head with a 

 pair of pincers sufficiently to keep it unmovable, and to capture the small parasite 

 easily. Both it and the bee were left for a while on the table in my studio, under 

 glass. 



19837— 25t 2 



