THE HUMBLE BEE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2705, 17 January 1906, Page 20

THE HUMBLE BEE.

ITS HABITS AND USEFULNESS. IMPORTATIONS TO CHRISTCHURCH. (Lyttelton Times, 11th inst.) The humble bee was brought up befor« the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association again yesterday, when several letters from experts in other countries were read. Mr F. W. L. Sladen, a high authority on the question, wrote from the Hippie Court Apiary, near Dover, England, stating that he would be \<ry glad to co-operate with Mr A. PI. Hamm, of Oxford, m assisting the association's committee in the work of importing humble bees to New Zealand by collecting and shipping them to Christchurch. The article by Mr T. Nottridge, giving a short history of tho introdxiction of humble bees into New Zealand in 1884-, would be of great service to him. He had studied all the species mentioned by the association, and had kept nests of them under observation. Bombas hortorum had a longer tongue than any other British species. There were two Tace3 of that species in Britain— namely, race horotorum and race sugterraneus. Some examples ol the- latter race were quite black (variety harrisellus). All the species mentioned as likely to prove useful occuried in his district. Bombas lapidarius was abundant. It v. as allied to terrestris, but was not so adaptable or so aggressive as that species. It worked on red clover . there, 3nd he had not noticed it bite holes into the bases of flower tubes as terre&tris did. It was one of the latest species to start nesting, the females appearing late in the spring and commencing to nest almost immediately as a rule. Ht had often dug up the impregnated females of that species out of the ground in winter, and felt sure that there would be little difficulty in making a satisfactory shipment fo the association. As regarded the other desirable species mentioned by the association — namely Bombas sylvarum, agrorum (muscorium of authors), muscorum (Smithianus, white, pale variety), and derhamellus, all lived in comparatively small colonies, on, not under, the surface of the ground. They usually appropriated the deserted nests of harvest mice. They were not so common as terrestris and lapidanu?, and he had not dug up the hibernating females. He therefore thought; that there might be some d'ffioulty in obtaining a sufficient number of the hibernating females of those species for the association, but ivould do his best. The females of sylvarum and Slmithianus often died unaccountably, and he would have to take great care in shipping them. Ho had observed both those species gathering honey from red clover. Bombas latreillellus, not mentioned by the association, uas a common species in his district. It

had a close colour resemblance to hortoruin, but had a shorter tongue, and certainly belonged to the surface-nesting group, plthough it made its nest underground. Bombas pratorum, not mentioned, started nesting 1 earlier than any other species. Although, as far as Mr Nortridge observed, female humble bees did not fighf. and kill one another as honey bee queens did, those of the same species would fighfc and kill one another as soon as they were about to lay eggs, and' if, in spring, a female should find a, nest just started of its own species, she would probably attach, herself to that lvesfc; and when a few days lat«r she was about to lay eggs, the laving queen of tho nest and she would fight, and one would kill the other. la that way about a dozen queens of a common species were generally killed in each nest. It would therefore be advisable nofe to let fly many samples of one species at exactly the same spot. Mr Hamm, of Oxford. England, wrote thar, it was hoped that a batch of the b?os vrould be shipped about December 15. Mr J. Fletcher, entomologist to thf» Dcmnion of Canada, stated that on account of severe weather it had been impossible for him to get specimens. He looked forward to helping in the interesting work next season.,

Tlio letters were received. Arrangements will be made for receiving the bees next month.