File:Little folks in feathers and fur, and others in neither (1875) (14761193506).jpg

Identifier: littlefolksinfea00mill (find matches)
Title: Little folks in feathers and fur, and others in neither
Year: 1875 (1870s)
Authors: (Miller, Harriet (Mann) Mrs.), 1831- (from old catalog)
Subjects: Zoology
Publisher: Hartford, Conn., Dustin, Gilman & co. Cincinnati, Ohio, Queen city publishing co. (etc., etc.)
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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find out in a minute, if you could get atthem. Youve heard that verse, How doth the little busy bee, ahundred tim^s I dare say, so I wont repeat it, but I want to tellyou how this little busy bee works. When the cold winter winds come in the Fall, perhaps youknow that most insects die, but this little mother doesnt get off soeasily. She hunts around, and finds a snug, safe place,—not in herhome, as youd suppose she would, but in some hole in a hollowtree, or under a haystack, or some such funny place. All Wintershe lies there, with no food, in a sort of sleep, but the first warmdays of Spring wake her up, and out she comes, ready to go towork. IN FEATHERS AND FUR. 165 The first thing to do, of course, is to find a soft place in theground where she can dig. She dont make the house very largeat first,—only a little way down she hollows out a place, and lays afew eggs. You see she has no idea of making a big nest alone forher two or three hundred babies. She wants some help about it.
Text Appearing After Image:
Soon, these eggs hatch out; and, youll hardly believe it, butthe babies are little fat white grubs ! Like a good mother, she nowgoes out every day, and brings in her baskets of pollen to feed thesehungry little grubs, till, by-and-by, they stop eating, spin a sort ofsilk ball around themselves, and stay there out of sight till theirwings grow, and they get to be like their mother. Then they justbite a hole in the silk ball, and step out, ready to help their mother, 166 LITTLE FOLKS like good little bees, as they are. With their help, the house ismade larger, and then lots more of the grubs are hatched, untilbefore Fall, the hard-working little mother has often two or threehundred children in her house. The Bombus belongs to the family of social Bees, called sobecause many of them live in one house. Another of the family is called the Stone Humble Bee, becauseshe prefers to build under stones. Still another is the Moss Humble Bee. She finds or makes alittle hollow in the ground, over w

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