POLLEN MOISTENING. 23 
to my own interpretation of this process. A few citations will here 
be given : 
The bee first strokes the head and the proboscis with the brushes of the 
forelegs and moistens these brushes with a little honey from the proboscis, so 
that with later strokes all of the pollen from the head is collected upon these 
brushes. Then the middle-leg brushes remove this honey-moistened pollen from 
the forelegs and they also collect pollen from the breast and the sides of the 
thorax. — [Translation from Alefeld, 1861.] 
In his account of the basket-loading process Alefeld assigns to 
the middle-leg brushes the function of assembling all of the pollen, 
even that from the plantar combs, and of placing it on the corbiculse, 
this latter act being accomplished by combing over the hairy edge of 
each basket with the middle-leg brush of the same side. 
It appears probable that the bee removes the pollen from the head, breast, 
and abdomen by means of the hairy brushes which are located upon the medial 
sides of the tarsal segments of all of the legs, being most pronounced upon the 
hind legs. The pollen is thus brought together and is carried forward to the 
mouth, where it is moistened with saliva and a little honey. — [Translation from 
Franz, 1906.] 
Franz then says that this moistened pollen is passed backward and 
loaded. 
Since the pollen of many plants is sticky and moist it adheres to the surface 
of the basket. Dry pollen is moistened by saliva, so that it also sticks. — 
[Translation from Fleischmann and Zander, 1910.] 
Pollen is taken from flowers principally by means of the tongue, but at times, 
also, by the mandibles, by the forelegs, and middle legs. The brushes of the 
hind legs also load themselves, collecting from the hairs of the body. The pollen 
dust thus gathered is always transmitted to the mouth, where it is mixed with 
saliva. — [Translation from Hommell, 1906.] 
Sladen considers the question of how pollen is moistened by the 
honey bee, humblebee ( bumblebee) , and some other bees, but does not 
appear to reach definite conclusions. In one of his papers (1912, c) 
he states that the pollen of some plants may be found in the mouth 
cavity and in the region of the mouth, but he reaches the conclusion 
that this pollen is comparatively " dry," using the word in a " rela- 
tive sense." He asserts that " nowhere but on the corbicula and 
hind metatarsal brushes did I find the sticky pollen, except some- 
times on the tips of the long, branched hairs on the back (upper) 
edges of the tibia? and femora of the middle legs, and then only 
in heavily laden bees, where it is reasonable to suppose it had 
collected accidentally as the result of contact with the hind metatarsal 
brushes." 
These and other considerations lead Sladen to think that, in the 
case of the bumblebee at least, the pollen " may be moistened on the 
hind metatarsus with the tongue." He states that the tongue of 
the bumblebee is of sufficient length to reach the hind metatarsus 
