Humble Bee
(Bombus terrestris, B. lucorum, &c.). Humble Bees have been known to damage Beans and cultivated flowers that have the nectar at the bottom of a long tube, by boring a hole in the calyx to obtain the nectar more easily. The flowers are not fertilised when robbed in this way, and the seeds become abortive. Yet though this at times occurs, the damage done by it is so slight that the Bees ought to be regarded as useful allies, because of the services rendered by them in conveying pollen from flower to flower. There is reason to believe that certain plants, e.g., Red Clover, are dependent on Humble Bees for their fertilisation. Should the Bees become really injurious, their numbers are most easily lessened by the destruction of their nests, which will be found under moss or stones, or in holes in the ground.