. Birds of other lands, reptiles, fishes, jointed animals and lower forms; . separate cell, and in a few days the egg hatches into a white footless maggot, which is carefully tended by the workers, and fed by them with a preparation secreted by the bees, which is carefully graduated, not only according to the age of the grub, but is differently constituted according to the sex and status of the bee; for it is well known that it is in the power of the workers to develop a young grub which would otherwise become a sterile worker into a perfect queen-bee, by placing it in a large cell, and rearin
. Birds of other lands, reptiles, fishes, jointed animals and lower forms; . separate cell, and in a few days the egg hatches into a white footless maggot, which is carefully tended by the workers, and fed by them with a preparation secreted by the bees, which is carefully graduated, not only according to the age of the grub, but is differently constituted according to the sex and status of the bee; for it is well known that it is in the power of the workers to develop a young grub which would otherwise become a sterile worker into a perfect queen-bee, by placing it in a large cell, and rearing it on the same nourishing food which is supplied to those grubs which are intended to become perfect queens. When the grub is full-grown, it spins itself a small silken cocoon, and becomes a pupa, or nymph, as it is called. The pupa somewhat resembles a swathed mummy, for all the external portions of the future bee can be seen outlined in the hard casing which encloses it. As soon as it arrives at maturity, it makes its way out through the upper end, when the cell is at. Phtlo by W. t Dartdc, F.^. HORNET iRegint^s Park STINGING FOUR-WINGED INSECTS 309 olce prepared b\ the other bees for a fresh occupant. Thenewly born bee is at first moist, flabby, and pale-coloured ;but in a few hours her skin dries and hardens, when she at oncecommences her life-long labours, at first tending the young beesand doing other necessary duties in the hive, and then, a fort-night later, going forth with her companions to collect honeyand pollen in the meadows and gardens. There is never room for more than one queen-bee ina hive; and the queens, which may be recognised b\- theirlonger bodies and shorter wings, have such a mortal hatredof each other that, whenever two of them meet, they willfight, if permitted, until one is killed. But in summer, whenyoung bees are hatching daily in large numbers, and the hiveis getting over-populated, the workers do not permit thequeens to fight; and finally on
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecad, booksubjectfishes, booksubjectzoology
