STRANGE DWELLINGS. 
2^6 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
SOCIAL INSECTS. 
Nests of PolybiA — Curious method of enlargement — Structure of the nests— 
How concealed — Various modes of attachment — A curious specimen — The 
Hive Bee, and claims to notice — General history of the hive — Form of the 
cells — The royal cell, its structure and use — Uses of the ordinary cells— 
Structure of the Bee-cell— Economy of space — How produced — Measurement 
of angles — A logarithmic table corrected by the bee-cell — The ‘lozenge/a 
key to the cell — How to form it— Beautiful mathematic proportions of the 
lozenge —Method of making the cell or a model — Effect of the cell upon 
honey — The Hornet and its nest — Its favourite localities — Difficulties of 
taking a hornet’s nest — Habits of the insect — Mr. Stone’s method of taking 
the nest — The Small Ermine Moth — and its ravages- — Its large social 
habitation — General habits of the larva — The Gold-tailed Moth, and its 
beautiful social nest — Description of a specimen from Wiltshire — Illustration 
of the theory of heat— The Brown-tailed Moth and its nest. 
After the Social Birds come the Social Insects, to which the 
following chapter is dedicated. 
Just as the hymenoptera are chief among the pensiles and 
the builders, so are they chief among the Social Insects, and 
the species which may be placed in this group are so numerous, 
that it will only be possible to make a selection of a few, which 
seem more interesting than the others. 
In the British Museum there are some very remarkable nests 
made by hymenopterous insects belonging to the genus Polybi 
several of which are drawn in the accompanying illustration. 
As it was desirable to include more than one specimen, the 
figures are necessarily much reduced in size. Neither the nests 
nor the insect, however, are of large dimensions, and the former 
are so sombre in colour as well as small in size, that they would 
not of themselves attract any attention. Their nests, however, 
are extremely interesting, as may be seen from the examples 
which are figured in the illustration. 
