. The Cambridge natural history. Zoology. I PARASITIC BEES DENUDATAE 3 I race. Why then should they attack the creatures ? Provided the parasites do not interfere in any unmannerly \¥ay with the hosts and their work, there is no reason why the latter should resent their presence. The wild bee that seals up its cell when it has laid an egg therein, and then leaves it for ever, has no conception of the form of its progeny ; never in the history of the race of the Andrena has a larva seen a perfect insect and survived thereafter, never has a perfect Insect seen a larva. There is no reason what- e
. The Cambridge natural history. Zoology. I PARASITIC BEES DENUDATAE 3 I race. Why then should they attack the creatures ? Provided the parasites do not interfere in any unmannerly \¥ay with the hosts and their work, there is no reason why the latter should resent their presence. The wild bee that seals up its cell when it has laid an egg therein, and then leaves it for ever, has no conception of the form of its progeny ; never in the history of the race of the Andrena has a larva seen a perfect insect and survived thereafter, never has a perfect Insect seen a larva. There is no reason what- ever for believing that these Insects have the least conception of their own metamorphosis, and how then should they have any idea of the metamorphosis of the parasite ? If the Andrena found in the pollen the egg of a parasitic Nomada, it could of course easily remove the egg; but the Andrena has no conception that the presence of the egg ensures the death of its own offspring and though the egg be that of an enemy to its race, why should it resent the fact ? Is it not clear that the race has always maintained itself notwithstanding the enemy ? Nature has brought about that both host and parasite should successfully co-exist; and each individual of each species lives, not for itself, but for the continuance of the species; that continuance is pro- vided for by the relative fecundities of host and guest. Why then should the Andrena feel alarm ? If the species of Nomada attack the species of Andrena too much it brings about the de- struction of its own species more certainly than that of the Andrena. Such extremely friendly rela- tions do not, however, exist be- tween all the parasitic bees and ^.^^-i^Q^Zudectaiuctuosa 9. Britain, their hosts. Friese says that, so far as he has been able to observe, the relations between the two are not in general friendly. He states that marauders of the genera Melecta and Coelioxys seek to get out of the way when they see the pollen-laden host
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