RECORD: Darwin, C. R. 1880. [Letter on purportedly carnivorous bees]. In A. S. Packard Jr., Moths entrapped by an Asclepiad plant (Physianthus) and killed by honey bees. The American Naturalist 14 (1) (January): 48-51.
REVISION HISTORY: Text prepared and edited by John van Wyhe 7.2007. RN2
NOTE: See record in the Freeman Bibliographical Database, enter its Identifier here.
[page] 48
[Only Darwin's letter to Alpheus Spring Packard (1839-1905), American zoologist, entomologist and founder of the American Naturalist, 1867, is transcribed below (p. 50). The complete article is available in the image view and as a PDF.]
[page] 49
[page] 50
We have also received the following letter from Mr. Darwin, dated Down, Beckenham, Kent, Nov. 23d. [1879] "I never heard of bees being in any way carnivorous, and the fact is to me incredible. Is it possible that the bees opened the bodies of the Plusia to suck the nectar contained in their stomachs? Such a degree of reason would require repeated confirmation and would be very wonderful. I hope that you or some one will attend to the subject."1
1 See Correspondence vol. 27. Reprinted in Botanical Gazette 5, no. 2 (February): 17-20.
[page] 51
Citation: John van Wyhe, ed. 2002-. The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online. (http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
File last updated 28 November, 2022