58 
BRITISH BEES. 
atmospheric influences, of heat, of cold, and of electrical 
agitations. That they are important media in sexual 
communication must be assumed from their great differ¬ 
ences of structure and size in the sexes, probably both 
as organs of scent and stimulation. I have often ob¬ 
served bees thrust their antennae into flowers, one at the 
time, before they have entered the flower themselves, 
and in some insects, as in the Ichneumons, they are con¬ 
stantly in a state of vibration,—a tribe which, although 
of the same order, are remote in position from the bees, 
yet they may be instructively referred to by way of 
analogy in the discussion of the uses of an organ, whose 
functions so clearly follow its structure and position in 
the organization of the entire class of insects, that the 
analogy might be safely assumed in application to every 
family of the class, if observation could only correctly 
ascertain its uses in any one of them. 
That it is of primary signification to the bees, is suffi¬ 
ciently shown bv nature having furnished these insects 
with an apparatus designed solely to keep the antennae 
clean, and which I have described above, when speaking 
of the structure of the anterior leg. 
In the social tribes the antennae are used as means of 
communication. The social ants, bees, and wasps may 
be often seen striking each other’s antennae, and then 
they will each be observed to go off in directions different 
from that which they were pursuing. An extraordinary 
instance of this mode of communication once came under 
my own notice, having been called to observe it. There 
was a dead cricket in mv kitchen, another issued from 
its hole, and in its ramblings came across this dead one; 
after walking round, and examining it with its antennae 
and fore legs a short time, it started off. Shortly, 
