1.Have you ever seen a hive of bees？Some hives are made with glass sides，through which we can see all that the bees are doing.
2.In early summer each perfect hive contains four kinds of bees.First，there is the mother，or queen bee，which lays the eggs，each in a little cell made of wax.Then there are the maleQUEEN（蜂王）DRONE（雄蜂）WORKER（工蜂）bees，or drones.These drones do no work in seeking for honey，and so they are soon killed by the other bees，and their bodies are thrown out of the hive.
3.Next come the most numerous①class of all，the workers.
Some of these build a great many little six-sided wax cells within the hive；while others visit flowers and suck out their sweet juices，or honey，and fill the cells with it.
①Numerous，plentiful；many in number.
4.Lastly，there are the young bees.Each egg laid by the queen bee is put into a little wax cell，and changes first into a little white thing like a maggot①without legs，which is called a larva.The larva is fed by the working bees，and in a few days it makes foritself a hard skin，and is called a pupa.A few days more，and the pupa has changed into a perfect bee，which makes its way out of its little room or cell，and is ready to set to work at once.
5.The queen bee is much larger than the others.Both the queen bee and the workers have stings for fighting，but the drones have none.When the bee stings，an acid②juice flowsdown the sting into the wound，and causes a smarting③pain.
Bees do not use their stings unless they are angry.If you go too near a hive，some of the bees may think that you mean to hurt them，and may sting you.The skin will swell at the place where you were stung，and that spot will feel very sore for several days.
6.The hive bee is dark brown in colour，and its body is covered with brown hairs.Its length is a little more than half an inch.The body of the bee，like that of all insects，is divided into three parts-the head，the chest，and the belly.
7.The head has two eyes，two feelers，
and a long trunk or tongue with which
HEAD OF BEE
（蜜蜂的头部）
the bee gathers honey from the flowers.The chest has two pairs of gauzy④wings above，and underneath there are three pairs of jointed legs.The belly is the largest of the three parts of the body，but it has no limbs attached⑤to it.If we examine the body of the①Maggot，small grub or worm.
②Acid，sour；bitter.
③Smarting，keen；causing sharp pain.
④Gauzy，thin like gauze.
⑤Attached，fastened.
bee carefully，we shall see that it is made of a number of rings joined together.
8.Each of the two hind legs of the bee has a hollow called the “basket”on the outer side.In these two baskets the working bee stores up the pollen，or yellow grains like dust，which it gets from the flowers.This pollen is taken to the hive and mixed with honey.It is then called “bee bread，”for it is the food on which the young bees are brought up.
9.There is never more than one grown-up
queen bee in a hive at a time.As the summer goeson，and the hive becomes too full，a young queenLEG OF BEE（蜜蜂的足）grows up.Then the old queen and a great number of the working bees leave the hive.This is called “swarming.”The swarm of bees often settles①on the branch of a tree not far from the hive，and soon they are taken by their owner and put into a new and empty hive.
SUMMARY
In a hive there are four kinds of bees-the queen，the drones，the “workers，”and the young bees.The queen is much larger than the other bees.The male bees，or drones，are killed after a while.The workers build the wax cells and fill them with honey.The queen bee lays eggs in wax cells.Each egg changes first into a larva，then into a pupa，then into a perfect bee.Both the queen and the workers have stings.The head of the bee has two eyes，two feelers，and a long trunk or tongue.The chest has two pairs of wings above and three pairs of legs underneath.When a young queen appears in the hive，the old queen and many of the other bees swarm，and a new hive is formed.
①Settles，alights.
【中文阅读】
1．你有没有看到过蜂箱？有些蜂箱的侧面是玻璃的，你可以透过它们看到里面蜜蜂的活动情况①。
2．夏初，每个完整的蜂窝中都居住着四种蜜蜂。首先是蜂后，她居住在蜡室中，负责产卵。然后是雄性蜜蜂，即雄蜂。它们不参加采蜜的工作，因此很快会被其他同类杀死并扔出蜂窝②。
3．接下来是数量最多的蜜蜂，工蜂。有些工蜂负责在蜂窝中建造许多六角形的蜡室，另外一些则穿梭在花丛之中，汲取甜美的花蜜并填充到蜡室之中。
4．最后，蜂窝中还有很多幼年蜜蜂。蜂后产下的每一颗卵都被放入到小的蜡室之中。最初，它们会孵化成像蛆虫那样没有腿的白色物体，这就是幼虫。工蜂负责给幼虫喂食。几天之后，它们便会长出坚硬的皮肤，这就是蛹。再过几天，蛹就会蜕变成发育成熟的蜜蜂，它们从自己的小蜡室飞出之后就会立刻投入到工作之中。
5．蜂后的体型比其他蜜蜂要大上很多。蜂后与工蜂都长有螫针，可以用于搏斗，雄蜂却没有。当蜜蜂叮咬敌人之后，一种酸液就会沿着叮咬的地方进入伤口之中，从而造成剧烈的疼痛③。蜜蜂只有在愤怒时才会使用毒刺。如果你靠近一个蜂窝，有些蜜蜂可能就会认为你是要伤害它们，随之发动攻击。皮肤被叮咬的地方高高肿起，在接下来的几天时间里，这个伤口都会令人感到疼痛难忍。
6．蜜蜂的体色呈深棕色，覆盖着一层棕色绒毛。蜜蜂体长④半英寸稍多一些，与所有的昆虫一样，蜜蜂的身体分为三个部分--头部、胸部与腹部。
7．蜜蜂的头上长有两只眼睛、两根触角以及长长的喙或者说是舌头，它就是通过这个器官来收集花蜜⑤。胸部共有两种器官：上面是两对轻薄的翅膀，下面则是三对长有关节的腿。在蜜蜂的整个身体中，腹部体积最大，不过却没有任何附肢与之相连。仔细观察蜜蜂的身体，就会发现，它是由很多彼此相连的环形结构组成。
8．蜜蜂的两条后腿外侧都有一个被称作花粉筐（也叫花粉篮）的中空部分。工蜂将那些从花朵中采集的花粉（粉末状的黄色微粒）储存在这两个“篮子”里面。蜜蜂将花粉运送到蜂窝之中，与蜂蜜混合在一起。这就是“蜂粮”，幼年蜜蜂依靠这些食物发育成长。
9．蜂窝中不可能存在两只成年蜂后。随着夏季的推进，蜂窝就会变得拥挤不堪，这时候一只幼年蜂后逐渐发育成熟。这时，老蜂后就会带领一群工蜂离开这个蜂窝。这种现象就是“分蜂（分群）”。这群蜜蜂通常都会选择一个距离原来的蜂窝不远的树枝，很快，它们便会建造一个全新的蜂窝，开始自己的生活。
译注
①蜜蜂属于“膜翅目-蜜蜂科”的昆虫，已经在地球上生存了3000万年。英语中的hive泛指天然的蜂巢和人造的蜂箱，这里应该是人造的，自然界中当然不可能有玻璃做的蜂巢。
②雄蜂唯一的任务是跟蜂王交配，之后会立即死亡。不交配的雄蜂则成了“懒汉”，在巢里吃闲饭，最后清一色在冬天来临前被工蜂赶出蜂巢，死在蜂巢外面。文中提到的被工蜂在蜂巢里面杀死的情况，可能是某些种类的蜜蜂才会有的。
③蜜蜂或者其他毒蜂可能会对人造成致命的伤害。蜜蜂的毒液主要成分是蚁酸和蛋白质，而其他种类的毒蜂毒液大都是弱碱性，必须对症下药。在野外旅游的时候，如果要到植物较多的地方去，不要抹芳香的化妆品，不要穿颜色鲜艳的衣服，遇到蜂巢要小心避开。蜜蜂的飞行速度可以达到每小时20-40公里，人是跑不过蜜蜂的。如果不慎碰到蜂巢，激怒了蜂群，千万不要乱跑，而要马上蹲下不动，护住头部，等蜂群安静后再退开。被毒液是酸性的蜜蜂螫后，应小心拔出毒刺，如果有断刺，必须用消毒针剔出，然后用肥皂水、氨水等弱碱性溶液清洗；如被其他蜂螫刺，最好用食用醋洗涤，用力掐住被螫伤的部分，吸出毒素，然后尽快送医院治疗。
④成年蜜蜂的长度一般是2-4厘米。
⑤蜜蜂的口器很特殊，属于“嚼吸式”，既能咀嚼又能吮吸。
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