. Text book of zoology. Zoology. ! 3. Inxncta. Or'ler 5. Hymenoptem. 271 5. True wasps (Vesparis), are characterised by geniculate antennae, reni- form eyes, long and projecting mandibles; the front wings are folded during rest. Some of them are solitary forms, leading an existence like that of the Sand-wasps; others, among them the genus Vespa (Paper-wasps, Hornets), live in large or small colonies, consisting of males, females, and workers (females with imperfect sexual apparatus, but with wings), and buUd ingeniously constructed nests. These consist of one or more horizontal combs, ea
. Text book of zoology. Zoology. ! 3. Inxncta. Or'ler 5. Hymenoptem. 271 5. True wasps (Vesparis), are characterised by geniculate antennae, reni- form eyes, long and projecting mandibles; the front wings are folded during rest. Some of them are solitary forms, leading an existence like that of the Sand-wasps; others, among them the genus Vespa (Paper-wasps, Hornets), live in large or small colonies, consisting of males, females, and workers (females with imperfect sexual apparatus, but with wings), and buUd ingeniously constructed nests. These consist of one or more horizontal combs, each composed of a number of closely apposed prismatic hexagonal tubes closed at one end, the so-called cells, which are aiTanged perpendicularly with the openings downwards, and are vised as dweUings for the larvae and pupae; the combs may be connected by shafts, and the whole nest be surrounded by a loose or firm covering. The material chiefly used for the nest is a mass formed of finely masticated wood or bark, which, when dry, has the appearance of paper. The larvae are fed upon com- minuted Insects. The whole population of the nest dies in the late autumn, with the exception of the young fertilised females. They survive the winter, and in the following spring found a new colony, the completion of which is accomplished later by the workers to which they give rise; the nest, which is often large, is. thus the work of a single summer. 6. Bees (Apiarix) axe usually very hairy, the antennae are geniculate, the eyes not emarginate, the tongue elongate, the galeae and laciniae, and the labial palps are often very long and flat; the tibiae and tarsi of the hind legs are usually broad. Some Bees form colonies of males, females, and winged workers (sterile females); others are solitary. The Honey-bee {Apis imellifico) is a colonial form, and there is only a single fertile female (the queen) in each nest; the hatching of a new female is a signal for a division of the colony, to form a
Size: 1478px × 1691px
Photo credit: © The Book Worm / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectzoology, bookyear1896
